


2 Rows Up, 1 Row Over

by tumblruserpailylove



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: Angst and Feels, DNA test, F/F, Family Secrets, First Kiss, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Insecurity, Murder, Nicole and Wynonna are sisters, Nicole has a huge crush on Waverly, Sharing a Bed, also some good sisterly moments too, bad childhood, lots of deceit, secrets and lies, so it's an au, switched at birth - Freeform, there's a lot of twists and turns so hold on, they're in high school
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-14
Updated: 2020-10-09
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:15:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 132,044
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24722149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tumblruserpailylove/pseuds/tumblruserpailylove
Summary: Nicole has never really felt like she fits in with her family. That has a lot to do with the fact that her father, Ward Earp, treats her like an outcast. The only person who has ever been on her side is her big sister Wynonna. On her sixteenth birthday, Nicole makes a decision that not only changes her life but sends shockwaves into the lives of those around to her. The more secrets she discovers the more she realizes nothing in her life is what it seems.--------------------------------------------
Relationships: Waverly Earp/Nicole Haught, WayHaught, WynHaught, Wynonna Earp & Nicole Haught, earp sisters - Relationship, wynaught - Relationship
Comments: 267
Kudos: 391





	1. "All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way"

“Hey dork” Wynonna plopped down next to Nicole heavily, causing the entire lunch table she was sitting at to tremble. Considering it was an empty table it wasn’t that hard to do but it was still annoying and it showed when Nicole looked up from the notebook she had been writing in.

“This isn’t your lunch period” Nicole huffed with a roll of her eyes before she looked back down to what she had been doing. “I thought you promised to stop skipping class.”

“Firstly, you better not narc” Wynonna lifted a hand with a single finger pointed as if counting out the subjects she was covering. She flicked her second finger up to add to the total and gave an annoyed, forced smile to the girl “Second, I come bearing a gift.”

“A gift?” Nicole arched her eyebrow skeptically. Wynonna was not a gift giver. She considered leaving gross things in people’s lockers a gift. Suffice it to say Nicole was hesitant to believe any gift from Wynonna was a good thing.

“It is your birthday after all” Wynonna shrugged casually before digging into the deep pockets of her large winter coat. Her brows creased together in concentration as she rifled around all of her belongings. She produced a pack of cigarettes with a lighter, a few tampons, and a set of keys that did not go to her truck. Finally she produced the ziplock bag she had been hunting for and perked up proudly as she showed Nicole “A gift!”

Nicole had to fight off the urge to lecture her about the cigarettes and the keys in favor of focusing on the ziplock bag. When she saw the obviously used toothbrush and old comb inside she tilted her head to the side and stared at the bag curiously “Well at least it’s not a jar of spiders like last year.”

“Farts” Wynonna let out a soft laugh as she tossed the bag onto the table. She then started to gather the other items she had pulled from her pockets. “I gave you a jar of farts last year. AlthoughI don’t think I can top that amazing gift…” She trailed off and threw a smirk at Nicole before shrugging and motioning to the ziplock bag “I thought you might actually like this stuff a little more.”

“A used toothbrush and a comb older than me?” Nicole pinched the seal of the bag between her thumb and forefinger and lifted it as if it were dangerous.

“It’s for your science thingy” Wynonna flicked her hand at the bag a few times almost like she was batting it away from her sight before she looked back at Nicole. “You wouldn’t shut up about samples so I got you samples.”

Nicole’s eyes fluttered in surprised as she realized what Wynonna had done. She stared in disbelief at her. This was by far the nicest thing Wynonna had ever done for her. Aside from beating up anyone who was mean to her but that just kind of came with the territory. She gave her head a shake at the thought and focused back on Wynonna with a genuinely flattered smile on her lips “Thank you.”

“Whatever. Happy birthday, Patch” Wynonna stood from the table now and reached out to quickly ruffled Nicole’s short wavy red locks around her head. When she heard Nicole groan in disapproval she let out a satisfied laugh before she stepped away. “See ya later, dweeb.”

Nicole scowled, pushing her hair back out of her face as she watched Wynonna leave the cafeteria. She rolled her eyes in annoyance before turning her attention back to the ziplock bag. She bit her lip almost nervously and ran a finger over the length of the toothbrush handle inside the see-through bag. 

“You know, I thought you only looked at a certain cheerleader that way” Jeremy came up behind Nicole and let out a laugh at his friend stroking the bag of obviously overused hygiene products.

“Jesus” Nicole jumped out of her skin at the sudden appearance of her friend. She looked up at him with a frown as she hurried to stuff the ziplock bag into her backpack. “I hate when you do that.”

“I have a very light tread” Jeremy gave a shrug and laughed softly in amusement as he watched Nicole stuff the rest of her things into her backpack. Just then the bell above their heads rang and he perked an eyebrow. He always had good timing. He motioned for Nicole to follow as he headed toward the door of the cafeteria “Are you ready for the Biology test?”

“I think so” Nicole gave a nod as she stood from the table, slid one of the straps of her backpack over her shoulder, then hurried to catch up to her friend. She glanced at him with a crooked smile then looked at her feet “We also get our lab partners today. Do you think she will let us pick?”

“If she does…” Jeremy smiled and reached out to take hold of Nicole’s arm. He gave her a wink and a nudge before laughing softly “I don’t dare partner with anyone else. The class is hard enough doing the work for myself. At least with you I know I won’t have to do your homework, too.”

“It’s not that hard” Nicole shrugged before returning the nudge with one of her own.

Just then someone walking by ran into Jeremy, hard, then spun around. The larger boy curled his lip into a snarl and pointed at how Nicole had caught Jeremy so he didn’t fall “It’s cute that your girlfriend is strong enough to catch you. Do you wear the dresses at home, too?”

“Ignore him” Nicole grumbled as she helped Jeremy stand upright and gave him a polite shove toward their classroom. She scowled at the overgrown meathead and lifted her hand to flip him off.

“You use that finger up his ass?” The boy called before letting out a cackle. He turned to high five his friend he had been walking with. His hand was caught in motion, however, by Wynonna. She had seen everything unfold and stepped up behind the bully. She tilted her head to the side and smiled at him sweetly as she started to twist his wrist that she held to the side. “You have two seconds to apologize and promise to leave them alone forever or all of your Friday nights are going to be a lot more lonely.”

“You don’t scare me- OUCH!” The boy immediately started to curl to the side in an attempt to stop the wrenching of his wrist.

“Better act fast. I’m about to snap your girlfriend off your wrist” Wynonna continued to smile at him sweetly even though her eyes had narrowed into an evil glare.

“Ow, ow, I’m sorry alright!” The boy yelped loudly. By now a crowd had gathered to watch.

“Not to me” Wynonna let go of his wrist and used the same hand to motion to where Jeremy and Nicole stood looking a little horrified. “Apologize to them.”

“I’m sorry” The boy whined as he rubbed at his wrist. 

“And?” Wynonna slapped the back of the boy’s head.

“I’ll leave you alone forever” He whimpered out.

“Hit the road” Wynonna used her thumb to motion over her shoulder and gave a click of her tongue against her teeth a few times to indicate she wanted him to leave.

As the boy scampered away Wynonna stood there with a triumphant smirk on her lips. The excited murmurs in the hallway from all the bystanders faded after a few seconds. Then, like cockroaches in a dark room that has a light suddenly turned on, they all scattered. Wynonna’s smirk faded and she let out a heavy sigh before speaking “Any chance you can pretend you didn’t see that?”

“Not today, Wynonna” Principal Nedley’s voice came from behind Wynonna. “My office, Earp. Now.”

“You do realize” Wynonna turned on her heels to bring herself around to face the man. She gave him a smile then motioned over her shoulder toward Nicole and Jeremy. “I am doing you a solid here. Now you don’t have to suspend the star of whatever sport that box head plays. So, really, you should be thanking me.”

“He doesn’t play any sports” Nedley grumbled then motioned behind him toward where his office was located a few doors down the hallway.

“Then you should totally suspend that buffoon” Wynonna nodded as she started toward the office that she was all too familiar with.

Principal Nedley looked at the other two still standing in the hallway. He eyed them over once then gave a shooing motion with his hand “Get to class. Learn something. Make my job at least slightly meaningful today.”

Nicole and Jeremy both nodded and rushed away without another word. They were quiet as they hurried toward their classroom. When they both walked in, late, together, the entire class stopped and looked at them. There were immediate whispers that moved around the room. At the beginning of the year someone had started the rumor that Nicole had taken Jeremy’s virginity over the summer. It didn’t really bother them because they knew the truth. But, such is life in high school, people liked juicy gossip and thus far nothing juicier had come along to push that rumor from the short-term memories of the rest of the student body.

“Is there a reason you think busting into my class late is acceptable?” Miss Bustillos, their science teacher, came around her desk and sat on the end of it now. She looked over the two students carefully before lifting an eyebrow expectantly.

“We were talking to Principal Nedley” Nicole nodded quickly and gave a nudge for Jeremy to go find his seat. “He will vouch for us.”

“Fine, sit down” The teacher motioned boredly toward the classroom. As the two of them rushed to their seats she lifted a hand to silence the amused murmurs that had lifted around the classroom. “As I was saying, you will have the next forty-five minutes to complete the test. Once done you are to start on a list of ideas for your science projects due at the end of term. Once everyone is finished I will assign you lab partners. Tomorrow you and your lab partner will get together to decide on your projects.”

“Are we picking lab partners?” Someone had raised their hand to ask as Rosita turned around to grab the stack of tests she had on her desk.

“Fate will be picking” She turned around and gave a playful smirk to the room. There were a lot of people that did not like Miss Bustillos’ class because it was hard. But if you put up the effort and at least tried she was more willing to award a better grade. No one tried, though. Most people thought she was a bitch but, really, she loved science and hated that most kids these days thought it was pointless.

Nicole didn’t, however. She liked the class, a lot. She thought Miss Bustillos was a fun teacher. Then again she was good at science and never caused any trouble so maybe that affected her view on the class. That, and well, the fact that two seats up and one row to her right was a certain cheerleader that she might have a tiny crush on.

“You’re staring again” Jeremy whispered from his seat to Nicole’s left.

“Don’t make me separate you two” Miss Bustillos looked between Jeremy and Nicole. She handed Jeremy a test then looked at Nicole. She gave her a wink before handing her a test as well. She liked Nicole. She was a good student and she enjoyed science. 

Nicole gave an apologetic smile to her teacher as she took the test. Once she stepped passed her desk Nicole looked at Jeremy with a scowl. She gave her head a shake then slightly motioned with her head toward the cheerleader that Jeremy had just caught her staring at. She then lifted a finger to her lips to silently tell him to shut up.

“Alright!” Rosita had returned to her desk. She had a digital timer in hand. Once she had the attention of the classroom she gave a nod and touched the button to start it “Time starts now!”

Nicole drew in a deep breath then opened the test. She quickly scribbled her name then paused. Her eyes lifted and she couldn’t help but sneak one more peek at the back of the cheerleader’s head. She let out a dreamy sigh then looked back at her test. She was so glad the term had just started. She got to spend the next three months staring at the most beautiful girl she had ever seen for an hour every day. Life could be worse.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

The test was over and the class was chatting softly while Miss Bustillos finished whatever she was working on at her desk. She had a pair of scissors and each time she cut a bit of paper off she tossed it into a box. After a few more moments she finally set down the scissors and stood from her desk. She gave a smile at the classroom as she walked around her desk shaking the box she had put all the paper bits into “Now for the moment we have all been waiting for. It is time to find out who our lab partners will be!”

Most of the class groaned. Jeremy and Nicole sat up a little straighter. They glanced at each other with matching frowns. If she was picking random names the chances of them being paired up were not good.

“Without further ado” Rosita reached in and grabbed the first slip of paper. She brought it up to look at it and read the name. She repeated this, grabbing slip after slip from the box, making lab partner pairs as she went. She set the names side by side on her desk so she could make note of her who had ended up paired together. She would dock points from anyone who tried to swap partners without her permission.

“Chetri” Rosita called out and glanced at Jeremy. Nicole turned to look at the boy too. They both nodded and drew in a deep breath of anticipation. This was it. There was a long pause before Rosita’s voice called again “Cooper!”

Jeremy deflated. Bryce Cooper, who sat all the way in the furthest corner of the room, let out a groan and motioned to Jeremy “Come on, Miss B. I don’t wanna work with a nerd.”

“Nerds are the best people. Also…” Rosita shook the box and gave a smirk “...there is no arguing with the box of fate. There is a very sound scientific method behind it.

Jeremy slid down into his seat and cast a disappointed glance at Nicole.

Nicole reached out and put a hand on his arm “Hey, I’ll help you. Besides, you know she won’t dock your grade because of him. She knows you’re a good student.”

“Jones!” Rosita’s voice filled the room again.

Nicole whirled around with wide eyes. She couldn’t help but once more glance at the cheerleader sitting two seats up and once seat over from herself. She felt her heart stop for a second before Rosita spoke again.

“Earp!”

Waverly, the cheerleader that Nicole silently pined for, turned around now. When she saw Nicole looking at her she offered her a very soft smile. She gave a nod at her before turning back around to listen to the rest of the pairings that would be made by the box of fate.

Nicole, on the other hand, felt like she was going to faint. She slid down into her seat and stared blankly ahead of herself. Nothing was in focus. Sound had ceased to penetrate her brain. All she could feel was a fog that had consumed her head and the prickling tingles that had come to life in all of her limbs. She was sure this was it. She was about to die.

Then the bell rang and she was brought back to herself. She blinked to focus her eyes. She drew in the first breath she had taken in several minutes, she was sure of it. Her head turned slowly and she looked at Jeremy with complete and total shock on her face.

“You look like you’re going to be sick” Jeremy looked a little panicked. He got up from his desk and put a hand on Nicole’s shoulder. “Are you alright?”

Nicole’s head just shook. She was still trying to wrap her head around what had just happened. She opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by a soft voice behind her.

“Nicole?” Waverly spoke lightly so as not to startle the girl.

“Gotta go!” Jeremy looked between the two girls then quickly hurried down the row of desks and out the door.

Nicole blinked. She then slowly turned her head toward where Waverly stood looking at her. When she saw those soft brown eyes staring at her she felt like she was going to faint all over again. She managed to lift an eyebrow, though, and give a slight nod of her head to indicate she was listening.

“Here” Waverly looked Nicole over curiously, wondering why she wasn’t saying anything, as she slowly extended her arm to offer a paper she held.

“What?” Nicole managed to find her voice. She blinked and looked at the paper in Waverly’s hand. She licked over her lips, realizing her mouth was suddenly dry, before she lifted her own hand to take the paper “What’s this?”

“My science project ideas?” Waverly shrugged before returning her hand to holding the textbook she had tucked up against her chest. She looked Nicole over again slowly and after a moment her head tilted to the side “Are you okay? You’re as pale as a ghost.”

“Fine” Nicole mumbled as her eyes lifted to Waverly again. She felt her heart leap into her throat and she tried to put a convincing smile on her face. “Yeah, totally cool.”

Waverly nodded once, slowly, as if she did not believe her. She then shook it off and motioned to a paper that was sitting on Nicole’s desk “Is that your list?”

“Oh” Nicole looked down at the list she had written after she had finished her test. She blinked once then quickly nodded. “Oh, yeah, duh.” She scooped it up and quickly thrust it out toward Waverly “Here. Yeah, those are my ideas. Just a few, though. I have a lot so if you don’t like those ones we can totally do something else.” She was rambling. She rambled when she was nervous and Waverly made her nervous.

“I’m sure between the two of us we will find one we both like” Waverly looked a little concerned at the sudden rambling mess that Nicole had become. Her eyebrows knitted together in curiosity and she once more looked the girl over head to toe. She gave a single nod then offered a soft smile “You should come over to my place tonight so we can start narrowing down our options.”

“Yeah, totally” Nicole was barely able to breathe out the words. She felt her cheeks starting to pinken and she quickly had to shake her head to force the feeling to go away. 

“You know where I live?” Waverly motioned to somewhere vaguely behind herself.

“Of course” Nicole let out a laugh as if that was a dumb question. Then she realized that might sound creepy and she shook her head quickly. “Not in a weird way! Just because, well…” She motioned around herself and shrugged “...Purgatory isn’t all that big. I know where pretty much everyone lives.”

“Probably helps that your dad is Sheriff” Waverly let out a very soft laugh. “So I’ll see you tonight? Around seven?”

“Yeah” Nicole nodded and was finally able to feel her legs again so she moved to stand from her desk. She slung her backpack over her shoulder and took two steps down the row before she paused and looked over at Waverly. She frowned and her head gave a slight flicker back and forth “Shoot, I can’t tonight. It’s my birthday. I have…” She rolled her eyes and flipped her hand to the side “...family stuff.”

“I get it” Waverly let out a soft laugh. She reached for the pen that was clipped to the spine of her notebook and took hold of it. She clicked it so the writing end was now exposed. She then put the list Nicole had handed her onto the nearest desk and started to write. Once she was done she ripped off the section of the paper where she had written and lifted it to Nicole “My number. We can text about our ideas and narrow it down so we will have a starting point tomorrow in class.”

Nicole’s eyes went wide as she delicately took the phone number from Waverly. She stared at it as if it were a precious piece of art that would fade in brillance if looked upon too harshly. She gave a single nod and looked up shyly. She bit her lip and tried to fight off the urge to faint again as a garbled “Cool beans” bubbled from her throat.

“Talk to you later, then” Waverly stepped away, her curious look once more casting up and down Nicole before she shook her head and turned to leave the room. 

“Cool beans?” Nicole groaned and moved to slap her hand against her forehead once Waverly was gone. “You are such a freak.”

“What happened?” Jeremy looked wide eyed at Nicole as she walked out of the classroom. He had been waiting for her in the hallway on bated breath.

“She wanted to get together tonight to go over ideas” Nicole bit her lip to try and fight off her excitement.

“Holy crap!” Jeremy yelped then quickly slapped a hand over his mouth. He looked at her with wide, excited eyes and nodded “Did you say yes?”

“My birthday!” Nicole let out a defeated sigh and shook her head.

“Damn it” Jeremy frowned. They turned now and headed down the hallway toward their next respective classes.

“I know” Nicole gave a roll of her eyes as she slowly moved next to her friend. “My dad will probably forget anyway.” She let out a sigh at the thought. There was a lot of turbulence between herself and her father. Well, between her father and everyone in the family. But he liked her least of all. He had a good reason for it, in his mind at least. It didn’t matter what anyone said to try and convince him of the truth. He believed what he believed and no one could change his mind.

“But” She quickly shook off her father and gave her friend a smile. She paused just outside the door to her next class and held up the slip of ripped paper she had been clutching in her hand since the moment Waverly had given it to her. “I got her number so we can text about ideas tonight!”

“No way!” Jeremy’s excitement returned. He grabbed hold of Nicole’s wrist and took a better look at the writing on it. He let out a happy sounding sigh and nodded very enthusiastically as he stepped away “You are so in, Nicole! This is the first step! Lab partners to friends to…” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at her.

“You watch too many rom-coms” Nicole rolled her eyes but let out an amused laugh. “Go to class” She shoved her friend away playfully. “I’ll see you after class, alright?”

Jeremy gave a skip before turning and heading the rest of the way toward his class.

Nicole shook her head in amusement as her eyes fell back to the paper she held. Her heart skipped a beat as they landed on the neatly printed numbers that, once put into a cell phone, was the direct contact line to Waverly. She had to be dreaming. This was by far the best birthday ever. 

~.~.~.~.~.~.

“Just because it’s your birthday doesn’t mean you can keep me waiting” Wynonna yelled across the parking lot as soon as she saw Nicole come out of the school. She was leaning against her truck, arms folded, looking grumpier than usual.

“You’re particularly impatient today” Nicole rolled her eyes as she approached. “Did you get suspended?”

“No” Wynonna shrugged and turned around to unlock the door of her truck. “Luckily, I was able to use my powers of persuasion to convince Nedley that I was doing a good deed. Which I totally was.”

“You don’t have to always do that, you know?” Nicole let out a sigh as she leaned against the side of the truck watching Wynonna fumble with her keys.

“Save you from being picked on?” Wynonna glanced up at Nicole with an eyebrow perked in a way that dared her to disagree.

“I have gotten really used to ignoring the snide comments” Nicole shrugged and adjusted the strap of her backpack on her shoulder.

“Yeah, well, you and I both know I’d get an ear full about how I’m not doing my job if word got back to the Sheriff that you were being picked on” Wynonna rolled her eyes then pulled her door open with a little more force than she had meant to. She then motioned for Nicole to hurry up and get into the truck.

“For someone who barely acknowledges my existence he sure is concerned about the goings on at school” Nicole mumbled as she rounded the truck and opened the passenger side door before climbing in.

“That is because he is a prideful man who would rather perish than have his family name tarnished!” Wynonna stiffened up and mimicked the voice of a well-spoken Englishman. 

“So my being picked on, which doesn’t bother me at all, is something he is concerned with?” Nicole snorted in disbelief and gave her head a shake. “You’d think all the rumors about me would make him care even less about what happens to me. I mean, he doesn’t even think I’m-”

“Don’t” Wynonna lifted her hand to stop Nicole from continuing. She stared at her with a frown on her lips for a few moments before letting out a heavy sigh “Deep down I think he’s just trying to protect his loved ones.”

“He sure has a funny way of showing it” Nicole gave a shake of her head and fixed her eyes out of the truck window. She did not want to look at Wynonna. She knew what look was waiting for her. The look of pity. It was always the same any time the subject of her father’s disinterest in her came up. She let out a heavy sigh as her shoulders lifted into a shrug “I’ll be surprised if he even remembered my birthday.”

“Even if he didn’t, I did” Wynonna tried to offer a light smile even if Nicole wasn’t looking at her. She waited for a moment to see if that would get a response and when it didn’t she shook her head and started the truck. “You know they already ran the test once, years ago, when the rumors first started to fly.”

“Are you sure about that?” Nicole glanced across the truck with an eyebrow arched at Wynonna.

“I-” Wynonna had started but stopped herself. She thought about it really hard for a few moments. She had been so young that she really didn’t remember. She let out a heavy sigh and reached her hand across the cab of the truck to lightly take hold of Nicole’s hand “He wouldn’t have stayed with Momma if the test didn’t come back confirming you were his.”

“Then why is he so terrible to me?” Nicole closed her eyes to fight off the wave of tears she felt forming in her eyes. It had been something that haunted her for most of her life. Her father, regardless of whatever the first DNA test had said, was determined to treat Nicole like an outsider. He didn’t believe she was his. He made that very clear to her almost every day of her life.

“Because he’s a special brand of dick cheese, Patch” Wynonna glanced from the road to her sister and frowned. She wasn’t great with emotions but she had always had a soft spot for the youngest Earp sister. She was unfairly ignored and, sometimes, treated like a burden by their father so she had set out to make sure that Nicole felt that she always had at least one person on her side.

“Whatever” Nicole mumbled as she opened her eyes. She slid her hand out of Wynonna’s and to her face. She quickly wiped away the few tears that had escaped before looking back out the window. She was so over having to feel this way. She was determined to know the answer once and for all, for herself, so if nothing else she had confirmation that she was without a doubt Ward Earp’s child and he was, in fact, just an outright asshole to her for no reason.

“Chin up, Patch” Wynonna patted her sister’s leg before returning her hand to the wheel. “I’m not supposed to tell you this but Momma has been baking a cake for you all day. We are going to have a cookout. I even smuggled some fireworks out of the evidence locker the last time I dropped by the station to get yelled at by Daddy.”

“Wynonna…” Nicole looked at her sister with a shake of her head and a mix of annoyance and amusement in her eyes “Do you purposely try to push him to the brink of exploding or are you just clueless as to how obnoxious you are?”

“Oh this is totally on purpose” Wynonna smirked as she guided the truck into the drive of the Homestead. “I figured if he has to hate one of his kids it might as well be me. I am the most like him, after all.”

“I thought you said he doesn’t actually hate me” Nicole rolled her eyes but couldn’t help the laugh that escaped her lips at her sister’s antics.

“I’m trying my best to make that true” Wynonna parked the truck then gave a firm point at her sister before a smirk came to her lips.

Nicole just shook her head as she slid out of the truck. Wynonna wasn’t always the perfect sister. She picked on Nicole more than anyone. But that was just what it was like when you had a sibling. Willa, their oldest sister, had picked on her too when they were younger. She was off at college now, or so she said. No one actually believed it but she was their father’s favorite so they all went along with the story.

There was no real honesty in the Earp family. No one talked about how Ward was a drunk and a terrible Sheriff. No one mentioned that he had cheated on their mother more times than they could count. They all pretended like he had never hit Michelle. It had only happened a few times, right after the rumors that Nicole was not his came out. Not that it was an excuse for his behavior, at all, but once the DNA results came back he had never touched her again. 

They also didn’t talk about the fact that the entire town believed that Nicole was not Ward’s because of Michelle’s own infidelity. It had only been one man but it had been a long, ongoing affair. It was very likely that Nicole was not Ward’s child but then the rumors came out and it drove them to a DNA test. At least that is what Nicole had been told. She had been four at the time so she didn’t remember any of it.

She did remember, though, how her father changed after that. He never looked at her the same. Maybe he wasn’t convinced by the results because he definitely treated her differently. He treated her like she was an outcast, like she didn’t belong in the family. For some reason he was more concerned about the way his family had been portrayed during the scandal than the actual results of the test.

Nicole never felt good enough to be an Earp. It didn’t matter how many times her mother told her she was as much an Earp as the others. It didn’t matter how close Wynonna and herself had grown over the past couple years. She never felt like she belonged. It didn’t help that she was the only one in the family with bright red hair. That really aided in her belief that she was not a part of the family. It had been explained away because of the light red shades of their mother’s hair and how recessive genes sometimes pop out unexpectedly. But she had never really bought it.

She was determined to run a DNA test of her own. That is why Wynonna had stolen the toothbrush and the comb. Nicole was obsessed with finding out the truth once and for all and apparently, in her own way, Wynonna was telling her she supported her. It didn’t matter one bit to Wynonna whether or not Nicole was biologically an Earp. She was her sister. She would always be her sister and a DNA test would never change that. For all her flaws, Wynonna was loyal as they came as far as family was concerned. Too bad Ward didn’t feel the same way.

~.~.~.~.~.

“You ready for cake?” Wynonna walked into Nicole’s bedroom without knocking. They had finished their cookout and were all relaxing before cake and the firework surprise Wynonna had put together.

“Huh?” Nicole, who was laying on her stomach, her elbows propped up holding her phone, looked up when she heard Wynonna’s voice. She quickly stuffed her phone under her pillow and looked at her sister curiously “What did you say?”

“Who are you texting?” A mischievous smirk took over Wynonna’s features when she saw the panicked attempt from Nicole to hide her phone.

“What? No one! Jeremy!” Nicole sat up quickly and slid her phone under her ass in hopes it would prevent Wynonna from getting a hold of it.

Wynonna had already lunged at her sister though. She tackled her backwards on the bed and the two of them immediately started to thrash and roll about as they wrestled over possession of the phone. Soon a mix of screams and giggles rose into the air as the sisters did all they could to gain an advantage over the other to try and win the phone.

“Knock it off, you two! Get your asses down here!” Ward’s voice rose angirly up the stairs.

Wynonna sat up and looked behind her in the direction of the shout. She then looked at Nicole, who she had pinned beneath her, and gave her an amused smirk “Ohhh, you’re in trouble.”

“Shut up! Get off of me!” Nicole put her hands against Wynonna’s chest and shoved as hard as she could.

Wynonna tumbled backwards and off the side of the bed. She landed on the floor with a heavy thud.

“I swear to god if I have to come up there!” Another shout came from their father a floor below.

“Shit, are you okay?” Nicole slid to the end of the bed and looked down at the floor where her sister had landed. She had expected Wynonna to retaliate but instead she was greeted with the worst possible sight she could see. Her sister had somehow won possession of her phone and was laying on her back, smirking, as she read through her messages.

“Yeah, cool, I would totally be alright with that” Wynonna spoke in a cutesy high pitched voice to mimic Nicole even though that was not what her voice sounded like.

“Wynonna, no!” Nicole lunged off the side of the bed in an attempt to snatch the phone away. 

Wynonna had anticipated the move, though, and lifted her knees up to shield herself. She shifted to the side, using the momentum of Nicole coming down off the bed to basically fling Nicole off of her with ease. She then quickly got to her feet as she continued to read “I am so excited to be your lab partner. I feel like I got lucky.”

“Give it back!” Nicole yelled as she crawled to her feet.

“Me too. You’re, like, the smartest girl in class” Wynonna curled her lip at the text she had just read then looked at her sister. “Like? Is she an airhead or what?”

“No, she’s…” Nicole lunged at Wynonna but once more missed when her sister sidestepped her attempt. She let out a heavy sigh and extended her hand, palm up, as if she expected Wynonna to just hand the phone over willingly. “She is actually really smart. She’s in pre-college courses, AP History, and already knows, like, four languages.”

“Like?” Wynonna mimicked the word with an amused smirk on her lips. “She’s already rotting your brain. You can’t be lab partners with her. Who is she?”

“She’s-” Nicole once more reached for the phone. This time Wynonna relented and let her sister take it from her. She let out a sigh and looked down at her screen as if she were afraid Wynonna had somehow broken it. “She’s in my Biology class.”

“No shit” Wynonna rolled her eyes. “Whoever she is better not be using you just to get a passing grade.”

“She isn’t” Nicole rolled her eyes the exact same way Wynonna had. It was moments like that, where they had the same mannerisms, that made it hard not to believe they were related. It was little things that reassured Nicole and this was just one of them. She shook the thought away and gave a shrug “Like I said, she’s smart on her own.”

“Well are you going to tell me who she is?” Wynonna arched an eyebrow suspiciously. She wasn’t sure why Nicole was being so hesitant to tell her who it was.

Nicole let out a soft sigh. She was pretty sure her sister was oblivious to the fact that she had a huge crush on Waverly. She hoped she didn’t know, at least. It would only make all of this worse. 

See, Wynonna and Waverly didn’t exactly get along. That was probably because Waverly’s aunt, who had raised her, didn’t get along with Ward. There was a lot of bad blood from the past and it had boiled over into the next generation. Well, kind of. Wynonna hated Waverly but the other girl just kind of ignored it. She was popular and tried to be nice to everyone which made Wynonna hate her even more. It was also one of the reasons Nicole liked her so much.

“Well?” Wynonna coughed out impatiently.

“Waverly Jones” Nicole mumbled through a defeated sigh.

“Ew, seriously?” Wynonna huffed out in disgust before shaking her head. “Sucks to be you, Red. She is the worst!”

“She’s actually kind of-”

“GIRLS! IT’S TIME FOR CAKE!” Michelle’s voice called up from the bottom of the stairs.

“And fireworks!” Wynonna’s focus shifted immediately and she rubbed her hands together excitedly. She walked by Nicole, swatting her on the ass as she did, and gave a nod “Put some pep in your step, cutie! I can’t wait to see the old man’s face when I light up the sky with all his contraband.”

“You’re playing with fire” Nicole shook her head and followed her sister as she tucked her phone safely into her pocket.

“Literally” Wynonna glanced back and gave a playful wiggle of her eyebrows before a gleeful laugh left her lips.

Nicole gave an amused shake of her head and followed behind her silently. She honestly didn’t know if she would have survived her childhood without Wynonna on her team. She really hoped that the DNA test she was going to have run within the next few days came back with good news. She couldn’t imagine knowing that Wynonna wasn’t her sister. That was what mattered most to her. She needed to have confirmation that, no matter what happened, Wynonna would always have her back. She knew that Wynonna was determined to fight for her family and she wanted so badly to prove she was indeed part of that family.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

Wynonna let out a sigh as she slunk down the hall toward her bedroom. She had just received an absolute ass chewing from her father about her shenanigans. She knew stealing and then subsequently setting off the fireworks would piss the man off but he had been a little more agitated than anticipated. Wynonna was used to being yelled at so it didn’t bother her. Doing whatever she could to get under his skin was her favorite pastime. She would never admit it but she made a note of every time the man was unnecessarily mean to Nicole then vowed to piss him off as a form of punishment for being a trash bag of a person.

As she slunk by Nicole’s room she caught sight of her sister laying on her bed holding something above herself. She stopped and slid into the open doorway, fixing her eyes curiously on her sister. After a few moments of silently watching Nicole study the ziplock bag that Wynonna had given her earlier that day she cleared her throat and walked into the room “You can’t actually see DNA with the naked eye. Surprised you didn’t know that.”

“Shit!” Nicole yelped in surprise and sat up while quickly stuffing the bag behind her back. “You could have knocked.”

“Door was open,” Wynonna snorted out a laugh as she moved to sit on the bed. “Also, why are you hiding that from me? I am the one that gave it to you.”

“I don’t…” Nicole rolled her eyes at herself and let out a sigh. She delicately brought the bag out from behind her back and set it on her lap. She stared at the items for a few quiet breaths before she glanced up at her sister “Do you think these will work?”

Wynonna just gave a bored shrug “I tapped out my science knowledge with the DNA tidbit.” She let out a laugh at herself before looking back at the bag. She tapped her finger against the toothbrush then lifted her eyes to look at her sister “Can I ask you something?”

Nicole motioned with a nod for Wynonna to go ahead.

“Will it make a difference?” Wynonna spoke softer than she had meant to. “I mean will knowing the truth really change how you feel about him?”

“I can’t explain why but I just have to know” Nicole’s voice trembled slightly. Her brow furrowed and her gaze dropped to the bag. She drew in a deep breath and after a moment of thought lifted her eyes to look back at her sister “I want to know for sure where I belong.”

“Are you kidding me?” Wynonna shifted on the bed so she could put her arm around her sister. “You belong here” She pulled until Nicole relented and let herself lean into Wynonna. “You are as much an Earp as I am.” She glanced to the side and offered a slightly crooked smirk “I feel it in my bones. It’s one of the few gifts I have. You are my little, obnoxious, know-it-all baby sister.”

Nicole laughed softly at the description of herself. She pulled back now and turned to look more seriously at Wynonna “But what if I’m not?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Wynonna said without a beat of hesitation. Her gaze held steady as she stared into her sister’s eyes as if blinking would make her words less true. “You will always be Patch to me.”

Nicole bit her lip and gave her sister a warm smile. When they were younger Wynonna’s favorite candy was sour patch kids. She always hid them from Willa because their oldest sister would steal them and hold them hostage. Suffice it to say Wynonna was very protective of the candies. All but the red ones. She would save those and give those to Nicole because they were her favorite flavor and, well, because of her red hair. Somewhere in those exchanges Wynonna had started calling her younger sister Patch as a term of endearment. To this day it was still Wynonna’s way of letting Nicole know she cares.

“Are you going to call me that forever?” Nicole asked mostly out of curiosity. She wasn’t opposed to the name but she often wondered if it would stick around for their entire lives.

“What else would you have me call you?” Wynonna raised an expectant eyebrow at the girl.

“My name?” Nicole offered up the suggestion with a shrug.

“Nah” Wynonna waved the idea off. “You don’t mind when I call you Red, do you?”

“Actually…” Nicole gave a look that said she hated that one. She wasn’t fond of it because it was just another reminder of how unlike the rest of the family she was.

“You’re no fun” Wynonna rolled her eyes and stood from the bed. “How about…” She tapped her chin to play up the fact that she was thinking “...kid?”

“No” Nicole’s brow curled into a frown.

“Squirt?” Wynonna perked an eyebrow.

“I’m taller than you” Nicole huffed.

“Barely” Wynonna mumbled. She glanced over her sister then gave a half-hearted shrug “Babygirl?”

“Ew” Nicole laughed and shook her head.

“Yeah I hated it as soon as I said it” Wynonna agreed with a laugh. She gave a slight shrug and fixed her sister with a fond gaze “Looks like Patch is sticking around.”

Nicole gave a nod of agreement and laughed out softly. She didn’t hate it. She liked that it was something shared between only them. In a family where she often went overlooked it was nice to know that Wynonna saw her. 

Wynonna’s lips curled into a satisfied smile as she moved toward the door. She paused and looked back at her sister fondly. Whatever that test said would be a moot point in her eyes. She knew nothing would stop her from loving Nicole as her sister until the day she died.

~.~.~.~.~.~


	2. "Do you know what it's like to like someone so much you can't stand it and know that they'll never feel the same way?"

“Alright, pair up for the last ten minutes of class!” Miss Bustillos clapped her hands together then motioned for the class to move about with a few quick flails of her hands.

Nicole felt her heart jump into her throat. Although she had been texting Waverly the night before that did not mean she was ready to interact with her face to face. She had used most of the morning mentally preparing herself for the task. The last thing she wanted to do was act stupid in front of her. She wanted to come off cool. She wanted Waverly to think she was totally normal.

“So I numbered our list in order of the projects I am most interested in down to the least interested” Waverly had scooted her chair over to Nicole’s desk since the girl had not made a move to come to her. She slid the paper on which she had written the list over Nicole’s desk before she settled herself on her chair. She gave Nicole a smile and motioned to the paper with a little nod “Tell me what you’re thinking.”

“Well…” Nicole pushed down the rising heat in her cheeks and sat up a little straighter in her seat. She glanced at Waverly, offering her a soft smile, before her eyes dropped to the paper. She took a few moments to read over the short list and gave a nod at what she saw. She tapped the third choice on the list and looked back up to Waverly “I think this one is my favorite.”

“Good!” Waverly saw the choice Nicole had pointed to and gave an excited nod. “Alright, good. Top three! That means we’re on the same page.”

Nicole let out a very soft laugh and nodded in agreement, “I think we are getting there, yes.” She slid the paper back to herself and once more looked at the choices. She looked like she was deep in thought about what she was seeing and after a few more moments of quiet contemplation she gave a weak shrug “So how do we decide?”

“Let’s make another list!” Waverly reached for the pen that was laying on Nicole’s desk and flipped the paper over. She wrote quickly, yet somehow still neatly, until she had the choices laid out with some columns under each option. “Okay, so, kind of like a pros and cons list but instead…” She tapped the pen at the top of each column and smiled “Why we want to do it and why we can do without it.”

“You like lists don’t you?” Nicole bit her lower lip to fight off a smirk as she tried not to laugh.

“They are very useful for a lot of things” Waverly tried to roll her eyes in annoyance but Nicole was too sweet and she honestly wasn’t offended at all. She liked organization and plans. There was nothing wrong with that.

“Okay okay” Nicole let out a breath of a laugh before pointing at one of the columns. “Well I think I like this one because it involves animals.”

“Animals” Waverly nodded in agreement as she wrote the word down. She glanced up at Nicole, unable to stop smiling at her, as she tapped the paper once she finished with the word “I like animals, too.”

“What’s not to love?” Nicole shook her head as the smile on her lips grew. Her eyes lingered on Waverly and she felt her heart flutter a bit. She could not believe she was having such a normal conversation with the girl she had been crushing on for as long as she could remember.

“They are far better than people” Waverly agreed softly then looked down at the paper. She had to look away because the way Nicole’s eyes had lingered on her had caused a blush to creep into her cheeks. She wasn’t sure why, exactly. But Nicole had kind eyes so she didn’t mind the lingering look.

The two of them were kind of stuck in a bit of an awkward silence now. Nicole slowly looked down at where her hand laid against the paper and gave her fingers a soft tap. She didn’t know what to say next.

Before either of them had to decide, the bell rang. Nicole let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. She looked up at Waverly, her lips in a crooked smile, before she shrugged and reached for her backpack “Well maybe we can narrow it down tonight. Want me to text my pros and cons to you?”

“They are not pros and cons” Waverly let out a very light laugh as she stood up from her chair. She took the list off the desk then gave a little shrug “Why don’t you come over to my place? Unless your family is one of those ones who celebrate your birthday all week?”

“Not my family” Nicole spat out an unamused laugh as she slid her backpack over her shoulder. She moved with Waverly so the girl could put her chair back at her desk and gather her things as well. “I can totally come over tonight.”

“Cool” Waverly gave a little nod as she moved the strap of her bag over her shoulder. She paused to look Nicole over just once before giving a nod and motioning for the girl to go ahead of her toward the door of the classroom “How’s seven?”

“Perfect” Nicole had drawn in a sharp breath when she saw the way Waverly looked her over. It was a curious look but that hadn’t stopped Nicole’s body from tingling because of it.

“I will see you then” Waverly nodded as they reached the hallway. She motioned behind herself in the direction of her next class before offering Nicole one last smile and a slight wave of her hand before she turned to move away from the girl.

Nicole nodded quickly and returned the wave sloppily as the girl turned away. She watched her go and it wasn’t until Waverly was out of sight that she exhaled. She rolled her eyes at herself and gave a few slow shakes of her head as she turned to head to her next class. So much for playing it cool.

“So!” Jeremy was standing right behind Nicole when she turned around.

“Shit!” Nicole yelped and put a hand to her heart. She let out a laugh and pushed her friend away from her. “Stop doing that!”

Jeremy smiled from ear to ear, letting out a satisfied sounding laugh, as he turned to walk next to Nicole as she moved “How did it go?”

“Don’t you have your own lab partner to focus on?” Nicole rolled her eyes in a weak attempt to change the subject.

Jeremy waved it off and bounced happily on his toes “You are finally speaking to your crush. I need all the juicy details.”

“Okay, shhhh” Nicole grabbed Jeremy by the arm and pulled him to the side of the hallway and out of the flow of students. She looked around to make sure no one was listening before she narrowed her eyes on him and lowered her voice “Could you exercise the slightest bit of discretion, please?”

“Oops, sorry” Jeremy frowned and put a hand to his mouth. He stared at her with big puppy dog eyes for a few seconds before his hand dropped and his smile returned “But, come on. Give me the deets.”

Nicole let out a soft laugh and let her friend go. She moved back into the flow of students and once Jeremy caught up she gave him a casual shrug “I’ll tell you all about it on our way to see your mom after school.”

“Oh about that” Jeremy paused, frowning because she didn’t want to disappoint his friend “She swapped shifts so she is off in the lab tonight but she said you could go by at lunch tomorrow.”

Nicole looked only a little disappointed but she shrugged it off quickly “I’ve waited sixteen years for a DNA test, I guess one more day won’t kill me.”

“So, deets?” Jeremy shifted focus with a wiggle of his eyebrows.

Nicole gave into the inquiry with a roll of her eyes “I’m going over to her place tonight and I will text you later” She gave a casual shrug, as if she wasn’t freaking out inside, then stepped past him. She whirled around and gave him a wave before motioning to her right “Gotta go to class!” Without another beat of hesitation she jogged off around the corner and out of sight.

Jeremy gasped loudly in horror as he watched Nicole give him the slip. He would have to really turn up the heat the next time they spoke. He would not let her get away without divulging every last detail of their every interaction. He had to know. He was a little bit of a gossip junkie and his best friend was now his supplier.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

“You know I think you are getting slow in your old age” Wynonna laughed as Nicole approached her truck after school.

“What?” Nicole shook her head in confusion at her sister.

“Ever since you turned sixteen you’ve been taking your sweet ass time getting out here after school” Wynonna smirked in amusement because she thought she was hilarious.

“Has it ever occurred to you that you are just growing more impatient by the day?” Nicole rolled her eyes slightly.

“By the hour” Wynonna pointed firmly as if seriously correcting what had just been said. She then laughed and tossed her truck keys toward Nicole “Heads up!”

“What the-” Nicole’s reflexes kicked in and she somehow managed to catch the keys that had been tossed at her without warning. She arched an eyebrow at them curiously then looked at Wynonna with a shrug “Why did you throw me your keys?”

“You’re driving home” Wynonna stated as if that should have been obvious.

“I don’t have my license” Nicole spoke just as plainly as Wynonna just had.

“Are you afraid you’re going to get pulled over?” Wynonna huffed out a laugh before she motioned for Nicole to head to the driver side. “I don’t know if you are aware but I have connections at the Sheriff’s office.”

“Wynonna” Nicole groaned in annoyance at her sister. Whenever she got an idea in her head it was impossible to talk her out of it. “I’m not going to drive.”

“You need practice. Trust me” Wynonna smirked in amusement as she climbed into the passenger side seat.

Nicole let out a heavy sigh and looked at the keys in her hand. She did need practice. Her test was the following week and it would be nice to have the illusion of freedom by getting her license. She finally gave in and pulled the driver side door open before climbing in.

“Besides, if you wreck it maybe we can finally get a truck that was made in this century” Wynonna laughed out as she waited for Nicole to start the engine.

“I am not going to wreck it” Nicole grumbled as she pulled on her seatbelt then put the key in the ignition.

“You could” Wynonna offered with a casual shrug. “I wouldn’t be mad. I’d even take the blame!”

“No,” Nicole narrowed her eyes in a scowl at her sister before slowly looking forward. She drew in a deep breath and after a moment finally put the truck in drive.

Wynonna screamed out in fear.

“WHAT!” Nicole had barely moved an inch but she slammed on the brakes anyway which caused the truck to jolt violently.

Wynonna let out a wildly raucous laugh as she slid down against the seat. She folded her arms over her stomach and kicked her feet against the dashboard as she was overtaken with sheer amusement at herself. She could not have guessed that Nicole would have reacted like that. It was way more hilarious than she had anticipated.

“You’re such a dick head!” Nicole reached over and swatted sharply at Wynonna a few times. She shook her head in complete exasperation of her sister’s antics before focusing back on the task at hand. She drew in a steadying breath then once more, slowly, let the truck start to move.

“Oh my god” Wynonna wiped at her face and drew in a few labored breaths as her laughter finally started to die down. “That was the funniest shit I’ve ever seen.”

“I hate you” Nicole grumbled as she steered the truck down the road.

“You love me” Wynonna grinned widely and reached over to ruffle Nicole’s hair.

“Stop!” Nicole jerked her head out of Wynonna’s reach as she bit back a groan. “Can you not be a total knob for like five seconds, please?”

“Ohhhh, knob” Wynonna put a hand over her heart and pretended to wince in pain. “You really know how to hurt a lady.”

“Shut up!” Nicole growled through gritted teeth. She knew Wynonna loved her but sometimes she was too obnoxious to handle. She wished the girl could take something seriously, just once.

Wynonna rolled her eyes at the fact that Nicole had snapped at her. Sometimes she wondered if she was the only one in the family with a sense of humor.

The two of them fell silent in dual annoyance. Nicole focused on driving and Wynonna just stared out the window. Luckily the drive from school to the Homestead was not a long one. As Nicole guided the truck up the drive, Wynonna sat up and gave a nod “See? I knew you would do just fine. You’re gonna nail the driver’s test.”

“Thanks” Nicole lifted an eyebrow at her sister’s sudden sincerity. She put the truck into park and then looked at Wynonna. She eyed her carefully, wondering if she had been too harsh to snap at her. She then shook it off because, well, it was Wynonna. She didn’t take anything to heart. So as she gathered her backpack she cleared her throat to speak “Hey, can you give me a ride after dinner?”

“You can just take the truck” Wynonna shrugged as she slid out of the vehicle and started toward the house.

“No I can’t” Nicole hurried to exit the truck and catch up with her sister. “I have to have a licenced driver with me.”

“Again…” Wynonna motioned to the police cruiser in their drive and gave her head a shake. “No one in this town gives two shits what we do as long as we don’t go around murdering people.”

“Wynonna, I-” Nicole stopped the argument that was about to come from her lips when she saw her sister turn and walk into the house without another word. She let out a sigh and quickly followed. She really wondered if she had hurt her sister’s feelings. She hoped not because a vengeful Wynonna was not someone she wanted to tangle with. She didn’t think her sister would actually ever hurt her but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t find other ways to exact her revenge. Pranks were one of Wynonna’s specialties. Nicole had been on the wrong end of way too many pranks in her life and was determined to avoid them as much as possible.

~.~.~.~.~.

Nicole let out a heavy exhale as she looked herself over. She did not want to make it obvious that she had changed clothes before going over to Waverly’s place but she also had wanted to look a tab bit nicer. So she had changed into slacks, not jeans, and from a tshirt to a button up. Nothing too fancy but definitely more presentable. She wanted to make a good impression. On who? She wasn’t sure. Maybe she just wanted Waverly to take notice.

She shook the thought from her head and lifted her hand to knock on the door she had been standing at for a few moments while she silently pumped herself up. She had been so nervous she had almost thrown up on the way over. Why? It was just a school project. But it was also Waverly and as casual as the girl had tried to be about it, it was kind of a big deal to Nicole. She had only had a crush on her for as long as she could remember.

“There you are!” Waverly smiled as she opened the door at the sound of the knock. She waved her hand to motion for Nicole to come inside then stepped to the side to allow her the room. “Very prompt.”

Nicole bit her lip to fight a smile. She wasn’t sure if she was being teased or not. She decided to just agree because she was, in fact, right on time. “I hate being late.”

Waverly let out a soft laugh as she closed the door then quickly moved around Nicole toward the kitchen. She motioned for the girl to follow and soon they were standing near a countertop that was decorated with a few flower pots and picture frames. “So my aunt isn't home. I thought we could study here…” She motioned around the roomy kitchen with the huge dining table and nodded “More room, closer to snacks, better light.”

“Perfect” Nicole agreed with a quick nod. That is when she saw Waverly’s eyes drop to what she was holding. She let out a laugh and motioned with the plate she had “Speaking of snacks I brought leftover birthday cake.”

“Did your mom bake too much?” Waverly perked an eyebrow as she took a step closer and eyed the dessert.

“No. So, funny story, I am the only one in my family who likes carrot cake” Nicole shrugged then turned and set the plate on the counter she stood nearest. “I will never eat it all by myself so I thought I’d share.”

“Carrot?” Waverly seemed interested in the option. She then glanced at Nicole and a slightly mischievous smirk moved over her features “Is that because…” She motioned up toward Nicole’s obviously red hair.

“Coincidence” Nicole blushed and dropped her eyes to where her hands were nervously pulling at themselves. “The irony is not lost on me, though.”

“Teasing. I love carrot cake” Waverly felt bad about teasing Nicole. She reached out and patted her arm just once, trying to comfort her, before she let out a sigh. She then decided to just move on and motioned to the table “Well, make yourself comfortable. Do you want something to drink?”

“Yeah that would be great” Nicole was relieved to be moving on. She quickly set her backpack on one of the chairs and started to dig through it for her notebook.

“What do you want?” Waverly called loudly from where her head was stuck inside the fridge inspecting her choices. “Water, milk, apple juice, ginger ale?” She stopped and stood upright. She looked at Nicole with wide eyes and tried to hold back her laughter “Okay, I didn’t mean to tease you again. We really do have ginger ale.”

Nicole let out a very soft laugh because it was pretty funny. She gave a nod of her head at the girl to let her know she was not upset “Water is totally fine.”

“That is my choice, too” Waverly gave a thumbs up then grabbed two water bottles. By the time she had made her way back to the table Nicole was already sitting and had her notebook open. She gave the girl a smile as she handed over one of the bottles she held “So did you make any progress on the pros and cons list we started?”

“I thought they weren’t pros and cons” Nicole stifled a laugh as she took the bottle from Waverly then watched the girl move to take a seat in the chair next to her. This made her heart flutter. The dining room table was huge. There was no need for Waverly to sit this close, was there?

“If it looks like a duck and sounds like a duck, it’s a duck” Waverly wrinkled her nose and nodded at her words. She then let out a laugh, waved it off, and reached into her backpack that had been haphazardly tossed on the table when she had gotten home from school. She dug out her own notebook and pen then shifted to face Nicole a little better, to show she was ready to totally focus, and gave a nod “So, what do you got for me?”

The two of them worked surprisingly well together. Waverly, as Nicole already knew, was not just some dumb cheerleader and had a great scientific mind. They took about thirty minutes to narrow their choices down to two. At that point it was just too close to call and they had reached an impasse.

“They are both good. Do you think we should do both?” Nicole sat back in her chair with a heavy sigh of defeat as she looked at the list they had made.

“Okay, overachiever” Waverly laughed at the idea and gave her head a shake. “If they are both so good why not just choose one? Seems like no matter which one we do we are destined to kill it.”

“Then pick” Nicole let out a laugh as she motioned to the paper again. “I don’t care.”

“I’m not gonna pick!” Waverly shook her head in amusement as she set a smile on her lips.

“Why not? They are both winners, remember?” Nicole rolled her eyes and tried to act annoyed but it failed as her own lips curled into a smile. Even if it was just for a school project, she was having an amazing time hanging out with Waverly.

“Because if we fail I do not want to be blamed” Waverly gave her a challenging look and folded her arms firmly across her chest.

“We won’t fail” Nicole gave her head a single shake as she pushed away from the table. She stood now and motioned somewhere into the house vaguely “Bathroom?”

“Second door on the left” Waverly pointed down the hallway that led toward the other rooms in the house.

“Decide while I’m gone. I really don’t care.” Nicole said with a laugh as she moved in the direction Waverly had pointed.

“How?” Waverly called after her.

“Flip a coin for all I care! There’s one in my bag!” Nicole yelled as she disappeared around the corner in search of the bathroom.

Waverly just rolled her eyes at their inability to decide. She then slowly smiled to herself. She liked Nicole. The two of them had never really talked much before now but she was glad they were partners. She could really see them being friends.

She moved to where Nicole’s bag was sitting on the chair and pulled open the first zipper she saw in search of a coin, any coin, to help them make a decision. When she did not find one right away she moved to the next pocket. That is when she found the ziplock bag with the toothbrush and comb in it. She lifted her eyebrows and slowly pulled it from the bag to inspect it. It was most definitely an odd thing to find and she wondered why Nicole was carrying it around.

Nicole came back into the kitchen just then. She had opened her mouth to ask if Waverly had decided but stopped dead in her tracks when her eyes landed on the girl looking at the ziplock bag. Her heart dropped to the floor. She blinked in surprise then quickly scrambled over to the girl. She snatched the bag out of her hand and stuffed it back into her backpack, zipping it away safely, before letting out a sigh “Wrong pocket.”

“I didn’t mean to snoop” Waverly whispered honestly as she sat back into the seat nearest Nicole’s bag. “I couldn’t find a coin.”

“It’s alright” Nicole tried to wave it off casually but had yet to look up. She was instead fidgeting with the various zippers on her bag to avoid looking at Waverly.

“Were you, like, hoping to sleepover? Because it’s a school night, and-”

“No” Nicole looked up quickly at Waverly and the look in her eyes told just how panicked she was. “It’s not that. They aren’t even mine.”

“Do you always carry around grossly overused hygiene products that don’t belong to you?” Waverly spoke gently so as not to sound as though she were judging her.

“No. It’s not…” Nicole let out a heavy sigh and shifted her bag on the chair as if she were afraid it would fall and spill the contents all over the floor. She pulled at another zipper that was already closed in one more attempt to look busy. Then, with a relenting sigh, she looked up again “It’s for something else. A side project.”

“A side project?” Waverly looked more curious than ever as she eyed the girl up and down carefully. “What sort of side project requires such random things?”

“It’s…” Nicole grunted out in frustration. She felt her cheeks blazing with embarrassment. She didn’t know how to explain it. Well, she did. But she didn’t want to. So she just shook her head and lifted her backpack now to slide the straps over her shoulders “You know what? It doesn’t matter. It’s weird and I don’t want to bore you with it.”

“Bore me?” Waverly puffed out a laugh as if that was a ridiculous thought. “The toothbrush looks like it was used to clean toilets and the comb looks like it is from the 1920’s. I am totally fascinated by whatever it is you have going on.”

Nicole rolled her eyes before she fixed an unbelieving look on the girl. She didn’t really feel like being mocked at the moment. But then she realized that Waverly looked genuine. She had not blinked and her face was soft. She looked very much like someone who was completely ready to listen to and accept whatever was going to be said next.

So Nicole let out a sigh and dropped her backpack onto the table. “Okay, you really wanna know?”

“Totally!” Waverly perked up with a bit of excitement now.

“Fine” Nicole tried to sound as if she didn’t care that Waverly was interested even though she was screaming on the inside. She wasn’t sure she wanted to tell the girl because, well, she could very well turn around and tell someone else and then the rumors would fly around town and potentially get back to her dad and then what? But the look on Waverly’s face again reassured Nicole that she could be trusted with whatever came next. So she drew in a deep breath and fixed a slightly more serious look on her face “I am sure you’ve heard the rumors about my family?”

Waverly gave a single nod. She chewed her lower lip because she wasn’t sure she should ask anything. She wasn’t sure how sensitive the subject was. Then her brows creased together and she spoke softly “It’s a small town. Rumors are hard to avoid.”

“Well…” Nicole motioned to her bag then gave a defeated sounding sigh. “I have always been curious about it myself and even though there was apparently a DNA test years ago…” She shrugged and looked down at her hands now. They were pulling nervously at the bottom of her button up shirt. She suddenly felt both stupid and vulnerable at the same time “I don’t remember it and I have never actually seen the results.”

Waverly looked surprised. She stared at Nicole in shock for a few heartbeats. Then she quickly shook it off and fluttered her eyes to try and refocus herself “Wait, your parents never showed you the test? Have you asked?”

“We don’t really talk about it” Nicole looked up at Waverly now. She frowned slightly and flipped one of her hands out to the side in a sort of half shrugging motion “But the way my dad looks at me and the way he treats me kind of makes me wonder, you know?”

Waverly didn’t like what she had just heard. She reached out to put a hand on Nicole’s arm “Is everything okay at home?”

“Oh!” Nicole realized how what she had just said might have sounded and she quickly shook her head to dismiss the notion. “No, not like that. He is just kind of cold to me. He forgets important things in my life. It’s kind of like I’m more of a bother than a daughter to him, you know?”

“Oh” Waverly was relieved that Nicole wasn’t being physically abused but she still didn’t like what she had just heard.

“I just have this feeling…” Nicole motioned to her stomach to indicate the spot where humans tend to feel intuition spring from and shrugged “...I feel like something isn’t right. Like they are hiding something from me. Maybe I’m paranoid but…” She trailed off and gave a defeated sigh as she sat now. She lifted her sad eyes to Waverly who still stood above her and shook her head “I just have to know.”

“I get it” Waverly nodded quickly and took a seat herself. She scooted the chair closer to Nicole so she could lay a comforting hand against her knee. “Even though my parents are dead I still have the urge to know everything I can about them.”

“Your parents are dead?” Nicole’s voice rose an octave in surprise.

Waverly simply nodded. “It was just after I was born so I never knew them. All I’ve ever known for family are my aunt and uncle, before he died. They’ve been amazing” Waverly smiled at that. She had definitely had a good childhood. She had no complaints. “But I get curious, you know? Everyone wants to know where they come from. It’s human nature.”

“That sucks. I’m sorry” Nicole frowned and reached out to place her hand over where Waverly’s laid on her knee. She bit back a smile as her heart jumped about in her chest. She couldn’t believe she was sitting in Waverly’s kitchen basically holding her hand and having a heart to heart. Never in her wildest dreams could she have imagined this.

“It’s okay” Waverly assured her with another nod. “But I get where you’re coming from and if there is even the smallest question about it in your heart, it’s going to drive you crazy until you know for sure.”

“So you don’t think I’m, like…” Nicole sighed and moved her free hand around in a quick circle near her ear before shrugging “...nuts?”

“Not at all” Waverly sat up a little bit and fixed the girl with a smile. “In fact, I totally support you! I can help you, if you need it. How are you affording the test?”

“Oh, Jeremy’s mom works in the lab at the hospital” Nicole waved it off with a soft laugh because it was no big deal to her. “She is going to run the test for me. Tomorrow, actually.”

“Really?” Waverly looked impressed by that. “She must really like you.”

“I guess” Nicole let out a soft laugh. “She’s known me most of my life.”

“Well you and Jeremy are always together” Waverly smirked very slightly now as a curious eyebrow arched on her forehead.

Nicole saw the questioning look and immediately shook her head “Oh, no, not like that! We are just friends, really.”

“Really?” Waverly bit back a smile.

“I know what people say happened, but…” Nicole just shook her head and gave an exasperated sigh. “Purgatory is small and boring and people have nothing better to do than gossip. Unfortunately we live in a society where a girl and boy can’t be close friends without something else going on.” She shrugged at it because, honestly, it was such a tired cliche. “But it’s not like that. We really are just friends.”

Waverly let out a very soft laugh and the hand that was still laying against Nicole’s knee gave a soft pat “I was teasing you. It’s not like I care either way. But...” She shrugged and sat back a little in her chair, finally taking her hand from Nicole’s leg, before folding her arms “...you really shouldn’t care what people think. They’re all idiots here.”

Nicole blushed and dipped her head to drop her eyes to her knee. The spot Waverly’s hand had been resting was already cooling in its absence. She knew she would be feeling the lingering sensation of Waverly’s touch there for days. She gave her head a shake to push away the thought before her eyes lifted to find Waverly once more “When you’ve been the hot gossip in town for your entire life you tend to get used to it. It doesn’t make it suck any less, though.”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have picked on you” Waverly frowned and shifted to once more put her hand on Nicole’s knee in an attempt to comfort her. 

“It’s okay” Nicole whispered as she fought off the tremble that wanted to move through her leg at the feel of Waverly’s hand resting on her knee again.

“It’s not.” Waverly argued with a shake of her head. 

Nicole’s lips twisted into a crooked smile as her gaze locked with Waverly’s. She could see how genuinely sorry the girl was and that made her stomach twist. She couldn’t believe she had gone from admiring her from afar, afraid to even say hi, to having an in depth conversation with her. She couldn’t wrap her mind around it.

“I think you should do it” Waverly breathed out softly as she blinked to break up the way that Nicole was staring into her eyes. She glanced down at her hand, gave one more pat to Nicole’s knee, then pulled it away again. She didn’t know why but she felt like they had shared a moment of deep connection just then and she wasn’t sure how she felt about it.

“What happens if he’s not my dad?” Nicole blurted out the fear before she realized it.

“I don’t know” Waverly answered honestly. “But I’ll help you, if you’d like?”

“Really? You’d do that for me?” Nicole looked completely flattered.

“In fact” Waverly perked up, her excitement returning, as a smile took over her features. “That should totally be our project!”

“Wait, what?” Nicole shook her head in confusion.

“Nature versus Nurture. Are you destined to become who you are regardless of how you’re raised or can your circumstances overpower your DNA?” Waverly clapped her hands together excitedly as she turned toward the table in search of a pen to write the idea down.

“Woah, hey, woah” Nicole reached out and put a hand on her arm to stop her. “I don’t even know the results. Besides, what if he is my dad and it turns out he is just a huge bag of dicks to me for no reason?”

“Does DNA dictate your future or can you change it?’ Waverly pointed enthusiastically at Nicole. “Are you destined to become your parents no matter how hard you try not to?”

“Waverly, woah” Nicole couldn’t help but laugh at the girl’s excitement even though she was also very overwhelmed by it all. “I am one person! That is not nearly enough data to prove or disprove any hypothesis that’s made. Plus, we only have like three months. There is no way to know that who I become in three months is who I will become in ten years!”

“Okay…” Waverly thought about it for a second. The wheels in her head were obviously turning as she mulled it over and after a few moments of pause she perked up with a new idea. “We compare ourselves now to who our parents were at our same age. We look for similarities, differences, any trends that might be forming…” She trailed off as if she were waiting for Nicole’s input.

Nicole wanted to say no but it was kind of a great idea. She thought it over for a few seconds then snapped and pointed at Waverly as something came to her “We ask about our grandparents, too! Who were they? Were our parents like them? Is personality totally genetic or is it something unique to each person?”

“Amazing. You’re amazing” Waverly let out a laugh as she hurried to scribble the ideas down.

Nicole almost barfed with how tighty the knot in her stomach pulled because of the compliment from Waverly. She was intoxicated by her. She was beautiful and smart and they got along so well. She was pretty sure she was dreaming.

“I can ask my aunt for more information about my parents and grandparents so we have two different family histories to collect data from” Waverly hadn’t noticed Nicole’s goofy grin and dreamy stare. She was too busy brain storming.

“What if he’s not my dad?” The words tumbled from Nicole’s lips before she could stop them. 

“Then we find your real dad” Waverly’s smile faded a little and she turned to look at the girl next to her. “And we ask about his family, his teenage years, his parents. We see if you are like him at all or if your personality is a direct result of the family you were raised by.”

“Well I can assure you I am nothing like my family” Nicole mumbled as her head dropped sadly. 

“So?” Waverly reached out now in search of Nicole’s chin. She pulled very lightly to bring Nicole’s eyes back up to her own and gave her a smile “From what I hear, The Earps suck. I’m glad you’re nothing like them.”

“They’re not all bad” Nicole gave a shrug and tried to fight off the goosebumps that were rising under Waverly’s touch. “Wynonna’s gotten much cooler since Willa left.”

“She’s kind of a bully, though” Waverly frowned and dropped her hand away from Nicole’s chin now that the girl was looking at her. “She’s not very friendly.”

“She’s a little rough around the edges..” Nicole admitted before shrugging it off. Then something Waverly said finally registered and she arched an eyebrow at the girl “Wait, what did you mean by from what you hear?”

“Well…” Waverly bit her lip, looking almost guilty, as her eyes dropped to the notebook she had been writing in. She tapped the end of the pen against the paper, making a few random dots, before she shrugged her shoulders “Apparently your family and my family had some sort of disagreement a while back and ever since then they haven’t gotten along.”

“So I hear” Nicole huffed and dropped back to slouch in her chair. “And how does your aunt feel about me being your lab partner?”

“I mean” Waverly lifted her eyes now to look at the girl with a frown. “Not thrilled but she also knows it wasn’t my choice. She understands it’s for school. Plus she trusts me and my judgement and knows I won’t go…” She cleared her throat as she lifted her hands to make quote marks around the next words she spoke “...getting mixed up with a bad crowd.”

“What does that mean?” Nicole sat up a little straighter, looking slightly offended.

“I told my aunt you were the good egg” Waverly held her hand up to stop Nicole from getting upset. “Told her you’re smart and you’ve never been in trouble at school. She seemed to accept that.”

“How do you know I’ve never been in trouble at school?” Nicole looked far more interested in that tidbit than she probably should have.

“I dunno. It’s a small place and people talk?” Waverly laughed nervously. She wasn’t sure if she had upset the girl or not. “I feel like if you’d been in trouble it would have gotten around school. Avoiding gossip at Purgatory High is almost impossible.”

Nicole stared at Waverly for a few more seconds as if she were trying to gauge whether she was being sincere or not. The look in the girl’s eyes said she was so Nicole gave a nod of agreement and shrugged “That’s a valid point.”

Waverly was glad to see Nicole didn’t seem upset. She gave the girl a very soft smile before looking back down at her list. She looked it over for a moment and couldn’t help the excitement that swelled inside her again. She glanced back to Nicole and nodded as the end of her pen tapped the paper “I think we have an amazing idea here. Miss Bustillos is gonna love it.”

“I think so, too” Nicole agreed as a smile slowly came to her lips. She let her eyes linger on all the delicate features of Waverly’s face. She knew the girl was beautiful. She had amazing hair and a great smile and eyes she could lose herself in. But she had never seen her this close for this long and she was just now starting to realize every little detail that made her aesthetically pleasing. Waverly was, in her eyes, the most stunning person she had ever seen.

“So” Waverly looked away and closed the notebook. She had to look away because Nicole was staring at her in a way that wasn’t exactly creepy but it was different. She felt like a painting in a museum or something and she wasn’t sure if she liked it or not. “You get your DNA test and I will ask my aunt about my parents and grandparents.”

“Totally” Nicole realized she was staring, and had been caught staring, and she blushed brightly. She wanted to die. She couldn’t believe she had just done that. She tried to shake the feeling off as she looked away to focus on her backpack. She once more played with zippers that didn’t need zipping. “I guess we’re done for tonight, then.”

“I guess so” Waverly agreed with a nod and a half-hearted laugh. She glanced at Nicole and saw the girl seemed nervous. This made her frown. She reached out and gently touched at her arm “Don’t worry about it. No matter what the DNA test says I think it’ll be good for you to finally know the truth.”

For once Nicole had not been thinking about the test. She had been slowly dying inside of embarrassment. But, hey, so long as Waverly wasn’t creeped out she would totally roll with it. So she looked at the girl and gave a little nod “It will be a relief either way.”

“Exactly” Waverly gave the girl a happy smile then pulled her hand away.

“Thanks, Waverly” Nicole said softly as she slowly got to her feet.

“For what?” Waverly laughed the words out because she had no idea what Nicole meant by them.

“For being a cool lab partner” Nicole shrugged as she slid her backpack over her shoulders. “For making this feel a little easier than it did before. For totally not being weirded out by the toothbrush in my bag.”

“I totally was for a second” Waverly teased with a little laugh. As that passed her hand reached out and she once more touched Nicole’s arm “But, seriously, I am glad to have helped.”

Nicole chewed her bottom lip to fight off the shiver that danced along her arm at the feel of Waverly’s touch. She gave a nod at the girl then motioned behind her toward the door “Guess I should go. Big day tomorrow.”

“Good luck” Waverly nodded and stepped back to allow Nicole room to move away from the table. “I’ll see you in class tomorrow.”

“Yep, definitely” Nicole gave an awkward sort of wave as she moved toward the door.

“But, hey, Nicole?” Waverly stepped forward and spoke loudly enough to stop the girl before she left the house. When she saw Nicole look back at her she smiled very tenderly at her and spoke softly “If you need anything, at all, just text me.”

Nicole felt like she might faint. The butterflies in her stomach jolted to life as if they’d been hit by lightning. The way Waverly looked at her and the tone she had just used was like something out of a dream. She wanted to pinch herself because she was sure this wasn’t real. She managed to nod, though. She lifted her hand in another crooked, awkward wave before deciding to just leave before she said or did anything else stupid. 

As she stepped outside, the cold air seemed to bring her back to Earth. She drew in a deep breath, held it for a few seconds, then slowly released it. She had to focus. She had to drive home. She couldn’t believe what had just happened. She had just spent a night with her crush. They had laughed and talked and gotten along as if they had been friends for years. She knew she should be focused on the DNA test but that was the last thing on her mind. She knew she would be smiling about her night with Waverly for days to come.

~.~.~.~.~.


	3. "Understand the environment to understand humans"

Wynonna perked an eyebrow and glanced at her sister sitting silently next to her as the truck bounced down the road toward school. It wasn’t like Nicole to be quiet in the morning. She was usually going on about whatever test or assignment she had to do that day. It was annoying. But the silence now was, somehow, even more annoying. She shook her head at that before looking back at the road and clearing her throat “cat got your tongue or something?"

Nicole looked over at her sister and threw her shoulders up in a quick shrug “Just got a lot on my mind.”

Wynonna glanced over again. She eyed her sister over slowly before nodding and looking back to the road “You do the DNA test yet?”

“Today” Nicole said softly and looked down at her hands in her lap.

“Good” Wynonna nodded. “Then you can move on with your life.”

Nicole looked a little surprised at the bluntness from her sister. She eyed her carefully for a moment before coughing out indignantly “Have I done something to piss you off?”

Wynonna just shook her head and let out a sigh. She was quiet for a few moments before casting a glance at Nicole “I just don’t get what it is you think you’ll find out? Why can’t you just accept that there was already a DNA test done?”

“He looks at you” Nicole shook her head before dropping it to once more look at her hands. “He talks to you. He acknowledges your existence.” She drew in a deep breath and flicked her shoulders up into a shrug. “I can’t shake the feeling that he is holding something against me. I just have to know.”

“I guess I just…” Wynonna sighed and shook her head as she guided the truck into the parking lot at the school. She was quiet in thought while she searched for a spot and once she finally pulled to a stop she looked back at Nicole with a sadness in her eyes “Am I not enough for you to believe you belong in our family?”

“What?” The emotion in Wynonna’s voice and eyes was more surprising to Nicole than the words. She stared in total shock at her sister for a few seconds before blinking the feeling away and quickly shaking her head “No, of course not! You’re a great big sister, Wynonna. You will literally kick anyone’s ass without question. You stole a toothbrush and comb for me even though you don’t want me to run the test.” She let out a sigh as her hand reached out to touch lightly at her sister’s arm “This has nothing to do with you not being enough. Actually…” She gave a shake of her head as something dawned on her. She thought it over for a moment then moved her head in a sort of half nod “It has everything to do with me feeling like I’m not enough.”

Wynonna just nodded too. She let her eyes move over her sister carefully, almost like she was examining her for lies, before she looked away. She took the keys out of the ignition and motioned to Nicole with a slight shrug “As long as you’re doing it for the right reasons.”

“I am” Nicole assured her firmly.

“Then I’ll stop asking about it” Wynonna offered her a crooked smile before sliding out of her truck. She walked around the back end and waited for Nicole to catch up. Once they were side by side she started to move toward the school “So how was your date last night?”

“Date?” Nicole squeaked the word out in surprise and looked at her sister with eyes wider than golf balls. She tried to shake away the blush she felt immediately rushing to her cheeks “It wasn’t a date!”

“Oh please” Wynonna sputtered out a laugh at the panic that her sister had immediately jumped into. “You came home smiling from ear to ear. The only thing that makes anyone that happy is a date.”

“No, really” Nicole let out a long breath as she felt herself calming down a little. She again shook her head but was able to speak more evenly now “It was for school.”

Wynonna paused and looked at her sister suspiciously, as though she were lying to cover her tracks. After a few seconds of examination she gave a sideways nod and started to walk again “Okay, that checks out. Only you’d get all goofy over school work.”

“Rude” Nicole frowned and hurried to catch up with her sister. She wasn’t really sure if Wynonna had been teasing her or not but now that she had used the word date she couldn’t stop thinking about it. The idea that she would ever go on a date with Waverly was bonkers. She would probably cure cancer before that happened. That didn’t mean she didn’t like the thought of it.

“Peace out, nerd” Wynonna could see she had lost her sister to what was probably a very important thought. So she gave her a little nudge then turned to head toward her first class.

Nicole blinked as her focus came back to her. She watched Wynonna leave, giving her a wave as she went. Once she was gone, Nicole drew in a deep breath. Try as she might to fight it, the thought of going on a date with Waverly came back to her and so did a smile. She shook her head at herself as she moved toward her first class of the day. She really shouldn’t dream such things because it would never happen. Besides, she had much more important things to focus on. 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~

“Did you do it yet?”

Nicole looked down at the text she had just gotten in the middle of Biology class. She lifted an eyebrow at the sender before looking up from her phone. That is when she saw Waverly turned around looking at her expectantly from her spot two rows up and one row over from Nicole.

“Well I can see some of you are itching to discuss your projects with your lab partners” Rosita motioned to Waverly facing the wrong way in her chair. She quirked an eyebrow at the girl before giving a bored shrug “Read the next two chapters tonight. That’s all I have for you. Pair up.”

Waverly was out of her seat before Miss Bustillos had finished her sentence. She knelt next to Nicole’s desk and looked up at her in anticipation.

Nicole was a little surprised at how excited Waverly seemed about the test. She gave her head a slight nod at the questioning look she was getting before leaning down closer to the girl so she could speak in a whisper “I did it at lunch.”

“That’s exciting!” Waverly popped up from where she had been kneeling. Now that everyone had moved about the room to pair up she could drag her chair over to Nicole’s desk without being in the way. She plopped down as soon as she situated it on the opposite side of the small desk and gave the girl across from her a wide smile “So how long until you know?”

“Mrs. Chetri said she would put a rush on it so 24 hours at minimum” Nicole shrugged as she reached into the backpack on the floor to pull out her notebook. “72 hours, max. But…” She let out a sigh before a weak laugh left her lips “It’s probably going to feel like an eternity.”

“Well I will just have to keep you busy then” Waverly bounced in her chair and pointed to the notebook that Nicole had just pulled out “I have so many ideas.”

“To keep me busy?” Nicole felt her body tremble at the words. The fact that Waverly had put any thought into doing things with her to help pass the time made her want to pass out. She felt like her lungs had just collapsed. She couldn’t breathe. Is this what dying felt like?

“For the project” Waverly laughed at Nicole’s question as she reached for the pen that Nicole had pulled out. “I figured the more ideas for the project we had the easier it would be to distract you.”

“Oh” Nicole exhaled. She felt the sensation coming back into her limbs. Waverly had not dedicated time to thinking of several ideas as a way to spend time with her. She had thought of many ideas for the singular thing they were doing together. That made a lot more sense. Her eyes fluttered and she nodded slightly as she put on a smile “Okay, what do you have for me?”

“I was thinking we should start with ourselves” Waverly slid the notebook toward herself. She started to write, her eyes trained on what she was doing, as she continued to speak. “Make a list of all our little quirks, habits, traits, and other things that make us who we are.” She glanced up and when she saw that Nicole was listening intently she gave her a smile. When her smile caused Nicole to smile she gave a nod and motioned with the pen toward Nicole’s cheek “Like your dimples. They are a unique thing about you.”

Nicole was pretty sure someone poured lava over her head at that moment because her entire skull got hot as a bright red blush rushed through her. Waverly had just pointed out her dimples. She had noticed them. That meant she was looking right at her and taking in things about her appearance. This was all way more than Nicole had ever dared dream would happen. She kind of longed for the days where she silently prayed that Waverly would simply say hi in the hallway. She wanted to go back to that. That was easy. But sitting face to face with her crush, talking and bonding, it was way more complicated than she thought it would be.

When Nicole took on the look of a sunburned deer in the headlights, Waverly furrowed an eyebrow curiously at her. She studied the reaction and when the girl didn’t say anything she let out a soft breath of a laugh “Are you alright?”

Nicole blinked once. She returned from her momentary out of body experience and focused on a very concerned looking Waverly. She let out a bashful sounding laugh and nodded at the inquiry “Sorry I don’t really like having the attention on me.”

Waverly gave the girl a soft, crooked smile before looking back to the notebook. She started to write again and after a beat she started to speak without looking up “You aren’t used to someone noticing you.”

“What? No.” Nicole snorted in a half-hearted attempt to act like that didn’t make sense when in reality it was kind of right on the nose.

“It makes sense” Waverly looked up now. Her brows knitted together in a look of slight concern as she focused on Nicole “You are the youngest of three and there was that whole drama about your-” She paused when she saw Nicole’s eyes go wide again. She wasn’t sure why talking about it bothered Nicole so much. Everyone in town knew about it. But since Nicole looked like she was going to throw up every time it was brought up Waverly decided to try not to mention it going forward. She shrugged and looked back to the paper to write again “I just mean it makes sense that you would feel lost in the shuffle of it all. You are used to being in the background.”

Nicole shook her head to deny it but couldn’t didn’t really sell it. She let out a sigh and looked at what Waverly was writing. She took a few seconds to read over a few things and after a moment she let out a soft laugh “I don’t think you being short is a personality trait.”

“But it’s genetic, right?” Waverly looked up and gave a little shrug of her shoulders. “It’s something that we can compare and contrast with our lineage.”

“Actually science hasn’t exactly determined which gene sequence holds the coding for height. They know it is obviously something passed from generation to generation but just because two tall people have a kid doesn’t automatically mean that kid will be tall, too.” Nicole spouted off the fact with a casual shrug.

Waverly looked up with a stunned look on her face. She stared in disbelief for a few seconds before she let out a very short laugh “How do you know that?”

Nicole bit her lip shyly and lifted one shoulder to her ear as she motioned around the room they were currently sitting in “I like science.”

Waverly giggled and looked back to her notebook to write again.

“Hey!” Nicole saw what she had written and let out a laugh “Being a know-it-all is not genetic!”

“How do you know?” Waverly gave her a playfully challenging look.

“I-” Nicole had started to defend herself but stopped because she honestly didn’t know if that was true. She did lift her finger as if making a point as she laughed softly “Okay so I don’t have proof to back that up but I bet I can find some.”

Waverly laughed out loudly and shook her head in complete amusement “You are incorrigible!”

Nicole couldn’t fight off the smile that spread over her face at the sight of Waverly laughing at her. It was probably the most beautiful sound she had ever heard. It made her breath catch in her throat. She wasn’t sure she would ever be able to get over the shock and awe of what was happening between herself and Waverly. They got along so well. She almost dared say they were on their way to being friends. That sounded outrageous but it didn’t seem as unattainable as it once had.

The bell rang above their heads just then. Both Waverly and Nicole looked up at the sound before looking at each other. Waverly smiled as she stood up and slid the notebook toward Nicole with a little nod “So I want you to add to the list. Think of little things about yourself that are unique. And, if you like…” She shrugged, looking almost shy, which was odd because she was pretty confident, and motioned to the notebook Nicole was now holding “Put a few things on my list, too. You probably see things about me that I can’t, you know?”

Nicole tried to pull in a breath but it failed. It felt like an elephant had belly flopped on her chest. Waverly wanted her to write down any observations she had made about her? Nicole could write a TED talk about her, she was sure of it. But she managed just to nod at the idea and stammer out a soft “Ye-yeah, totally.”

“Tonight?” Waverly moved back to her desk to gather her things. She made quick work of it and when she turned back to see Nicole looking confused she let out a soft nod “Wanna meet at the library? My aunt is going to be home tonight and I don’t want to subject you to her silent judgement just yet.”

“I appreciate that” Nicole exhaled as she laughed. She did not realize she had been holding her breath. She offered a smile as the two of them moved into the hallway together “Library sounds good. Same time?”

“Totally” Waverly gave a nod to confirm then immediately started away from Nicole toward her next class. She lifted her hand in a weak wave at the girl before turning around completely and getting lost in the flow of students.

Nicole stood there staring in the direction that Waverly had disappeared in. Her heart was fluttering. Her limbs were tingling. She was pretty sure interacting with Waverly on such a regular basis was going to kill her. She drew in a deep breath and as she turned to head toward her next class she felt a smile come to her lips. If hanging out with Waverly was her cause of death then she welcomed the sweet embrace of the grave with open arms. At least she would die happy.

~.~.~.~.~.

“Hey, nerd” Wynonna came up behind Nicole and hung her arm heavily around her shoulders. She closed her arm around Nicole’s neck and bent her over, effectively rendering her unable to walk, as her other hand came up and fiercely rubbed her knuckles back and forth over her little sister’s head “Whatcha doing?”

“Wynonna! Let me go!” Nicole half whined, half growled, while pushing with all her might at her sister’s arms.

“Just answer the question!” Wynonna let out a loud laugh and closed her arm around Nicole’s neck more tightly. She wasn’t positioned so that her grip cut off any air but that didn’t mean the tightening grip didn’t hurt her neck slightly.

“I am trying to leave!” Nicole grunted and was somehow able to shove both her hands against just the right part of Wynonna’s arms to allow her head to slip free. She stumbled backwards slightly and straightened up with a scowl on her face. Her short red hair was a mess, sticking up in all directions, as she frowned at her sister “Why do you have to be so obnoxious!”

“Why do you have to be so whiny?” Wynonna mocked Nicole’s tone before letting out a soft laugh. “Come on, really, what are you up to?”

“Going home” Nicole huffed and motioned with one hand toward the parking lot that held Wynonna’s truck as her other hand tried to smooth down her hair.

“Wanna come hang with me and a few of the guys from the hockey team?” Wynonna arched an eyebrow which made her look, for only a split second, as if she really hoped Nicole would say yes.

“That sounds terrible” Nicole grumbled and gave up trying to fix her hair. She would just brush it when she got home.

“Oh come on” Wynonna rolled her eyes and fell in step beside Nicole now that she had started walking again. This time when she spoke it was a little more tenderly “What else do you have going on that is more fun than the hockey boys?”

“I have homework,” Nicole offered up the suggestion with a shrug. “I also have to go to the library later to work on my science project with my lab partner.”

“Blow it off” Wynonna waved both valid reasons to the side with a flick of her hand. “Come on. You never do anything fun. You have one friend and you barely even hang out with him outside of school.”

“That’s not by choice” Nicole rolled her eyes as they reached the truck. “Our surprisingly old fashioned parents think any alone time spent with Jeremy is just an excuse to make out and get pregnant.”

“Isn’t it?” Wynonna asked with an amused smirk on her lips. She knew the answer to that. Nicole was not interested in Jeremy, at all. Besides, the boy was pretty gay. Anyone with eyes could see that. But that did not mean she didn’t love to tease her sister about that.

Nicole wouldn’t even dignify that with an answer because she knew her sister was being annoying on purpose. She looked across the truck to where Wynonna was staring at her and she gave her head a shake “Why do you want me to hang out with you and those dumb jocks so badly?”

“Because” Wynonna just shrugged as she unlocked the doors and climbed inside. She waited for Nicole to get in beside her and shook her head. “I feel like we never get to chill.”

“Now I know you’re lying” Nicole folded her arms across her chest and settled back against the seat of the truck.

“Firstly” Wynonna lifted a finger and pointed it slightly toward Nicole in offense “You really think I don’t enjoy hanging out with you every now and then? I mean we are sisters afterall.” She shook her head in annoyance now as she started the truck. She then looked back at Nicole and shrugged “The boys wanna go out in a big group hang and they wanted me to bring more girls so they would have a better chance of hooking up with someone.”

“Ew, Wynonna” Nicole shook her head and let out a disgusted sounding grunt of a sigh. “I am not going to go hang out with a group of horny boys! They will use stupid pickup lines and try to grope me all night. No.”

“You really think I’d let them do that?” Wynonna raised an eyebrow and looked her sister over just once. “They’d be idiots to try. I just need another body to even out the numbers!” She pouted out her lower lip and batted her eyes at her sister in an attempt to melt Nicole’s resolve a little. “Please? It’s just one night.” She would never admit it but she really did kind of want to hang out with her sister a little. For some reason the fact that Nicole was so Hell bent on the DNA test was really bothering her and she wanted to step up her sister game a bit.

“No” Nicole rolled her eyes at the attempted puppy dog face from her sister and looked away. “I told you I have to go to the library later.”

“Invite your lab partner” Wynonna, always the relentless one, offered a new solution to Nicole’s game of excuses. “More bodies!”

“Wynonna, I-” Nicole looked over at the suggestion from her sister with utter shock on her face. She didn’t know if she was more stunned to hear her sister’s idea to invite Waverly to hang out or if she was more terrified by the actual thought of hanging out with Waverly in any other situation than for their project.

“What?” Wynonna laughed as she put the truck in drive and started out of the parking lot. “If that’s what it’ll take for you to go out for one night I am willing to extend the invite.”

“You hate my lab partner” Nicole blurted out before she realized it.

“Do I?” Wynonna lifted an eyebrow curiously and glanced from the road to her sister and back again.

“Yes?” Nicole looked completely confused. Just the other night Wynonna was gagging at the idea of Waverly being her lab partner. Why would she suddenly have a change of heart? As she stared at her sister in confusion it slowly started to dawn on her. Her sister had completely forgotten who her lab partner was. She let out a huff of a laugh and shook her head in amusement now “You don’t remember who my lab partner is, do you?”

Wynonna looked a little guilty as she glanced at her sister again. When she saw the smug look on Nicole’s face she just rolled her eyes in annoyance and gave a bored shrug “Fine, whatever, I don’t keep tabs on everyone you talk to.”

“Fine” Nicole folded her arms almost triumphantly. Rarely in her sixteen years of life had she gotten the chance to get the better of Wynonna. There were little wins here and there where she out annoyed her sister but nothing too grand. This, she knew, would probably drive Wynonna bonkers. Whatever feud the Earp and Jones family had was well known throughout the town. Wynonna had fallen right into it at a young age and she now hated that family for no particular reason. One thing about Wynonna was certain, when she had a grudge she held it forever. Oh, yes, this was going to be fun.

“I’ll come” Nicole finally gave in. When she saw the happy look on her sister’s face she quickly interrupted the joy “But I’m bringing my lab partner and you can’t complain. In fact, you have to be nice.”

“Pffft” Wynonna huffed out as if she didn’t think that would be a challenge. She was great at being fake nice. It’s how she got pretty much anything she wanted from anyone in school. So what if she hated whoever it was. There was an entire list of people she hated in that school. None of them were bad enough to annoy her with their presence all night. Besides, if it could prove Nicole wrong and get her out of the house she could totally play nice for a few hours. “Fine!”

“Fine!” Nicole barked back. Just like that it was settled. The Earp sisters had made a challenge. Now it became a game of who had more resolve in the face of adversity. Nicole was pretty sure she could handle horny teenage boys ogling her all night if it meant she got to watch her sister squirm every time she saw Waverly. Oh yes this was going to be a fun night indeed.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

“Hey, thanks for coming” Nicole stuffed her hands in the front pockets of her pants and rocked up onto her toes for a moment. She glanced behind herself to see Wynonna, Chrissy Nedley, and the hockey boys perched atop the roof of an old abandoned farmhouse where they had decided to hang out that night. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know this is what we would be doing.”

“It’s totally cool” Waverly shrugged the apology away as she looked passed Nicole to the group of teenagers. She lifted an eyebrow at the scene unfolding on the roof before she focused back on Nicole. She gave her a crooked, curious smile and nodded “I have to admit I am a little confused as to why we had to forgo the library in favor of an unsavory hangout location. I didn’t take you for that type of girl.”

“I am not that type of girl” Nicole let out a very soft laugh and shook her head. She sidestepped now so she was standing next to Waverly as she motioned to the old barn where someone had just thrown something off the roof and the group cheered as it crashed on the ground. “But Wynonna has been weird ever since I told her about the DNA test and she was, like, determined to get me to come hang out tonight despite my protesting. So I thought…” She glanced down at Waverly timidly as she spoke her idea “...two birds, one stone. I hang out with my sister and we gather new data for our project.”

“New data?” Waverly’s eyes fluttered in surprise as her eyes turned to focus on Nicole curiously. “How so?”

“You get to observe my sister and I together” Nicole shrugged as if that should have been obvious. “You can see which traits we share. Compare and contrast, you know?”

Waverly gave a few slow nods to show she was contemplating what Nicole had just said. A smile slowly took over her lips and she let out a very soft laugh “Okay, I have to hand it to you. That is some very quick thinking on your part. Very smooth.”

Nicole bit her lower lip and bashfully dropped her chin. She gave a shy sounding laugh as her toe kicked at a rock near her and she nodded just once “I felt really bad about asking you to come here instead so I had to make it worth your while.”

“It’s very creative” Waverly reached out and gently touched Nicole’s arm. When the touch brought Nicole’s eyes up and their gazes met, she gave her a very soft smile “But you could have just asked me to hang out without incorporating our project. I’m not all work and no play.”

Nicole’s face turned red faster than she thought was humanly possible. She blinked just once before her eyes widened to a cartoonish size. She felt herself shiver at the idea that Waverly would willingly hang out with her outside the confines of their project. She was baffled. She was shocked. She was pretty sure she was dreaming because this could not be happening.

“STOP FLIRTING AND GET UP HERE!” Wynonna shouted from the roof of the barn.

Now Nicole was pretty sure she was going to die. She knew Wynonna was just being a jackass but the idea that Waverly might, even for a second, think that Nicole was flirting with her made Nicole want to die. She groaned out in embarrassment and tried to shake off her panic enough to form a few words. She frowned at Waverly and motioned to the barn “I’m sorry about that. She’s an asshole.”

“I know. She egged my car last year just for fun” Waverly gave a slight shrug then motioned for Nicole to follow her as she started toward the barn. She could see Nicole was having some sort of internal struggle so she decided to just take the lead and get it over with. She wasn’t sure why Nicole was so nervous. Maybe Nicole was worried Wynonna would offend her and she would leave. But Waverly was not the type to back down from a little bullying. She wouldn’t admit it but she was kind of excited to see how Wynonna dealt with being forced to be nice to her all for Nicole’s sake.

Nicole drew in a deep breath and hurried after Waverly. She suddenly had a terrible feeling about this. There was no way that once Wynonna realized Nicole’s guest was Waverly she would be able to be polite. She had a feeling there would be a huge blow up in a very short time. Maybe she should just ditch her sister. It wasn’t too late to go to the library.

“For someone with longer legs than me you’re having a hard time keeping up” Waverly laughed out and motioned for Nicole to hurry up. She had reached the ladder and was waiting for the girl to join her before she climbed up.

“Waverly, wait” Nicole reached out and took hold of the girl’s arm gently. She looked at her with panic shining in her eyes as her head shook. “This was a bad idea. My sister didn’t realize you were my lab partner and she is going to be super pissed when you get to the top of the ladder and-”

“Nicole” Waverly put her hand on the other girl’s shoulder and gave a soft squeeze. Her tone was even and her eyes unblinking as she met her gaze. She gave a single, confident nod as she spoke “I am not afraid of her. Whatever happened between your parents and my aunt has no bearing whatsoever on how I feel about her. She can be as mean as she likes to me because it won’t phase me.” She patted Nicole’s shoulder as her lips curled into a chipper smile “Besides, I am totally obsessed with your idea of me observing you and your sister together! So come on.”

Before Nicole could argue Waverly made quick work of the ladder and was out of reach within just a second. So she relented the fight with a sigh, shook her head, and followed the girl up. When she reached the top and climbed to her feet, she brushed her hands together, and gave the group a smile. She motioned to Waverly and gave a shrug “I’m sure you all know Waverly.”

“I didn’t know you were coming, girl!” Chrissy rushed over and gave Waverly a tight, excited hug.

Nicole could see some of the hockey guys smirking in delight. It was no secret that Waverly was one of the most popular girls in school. She was so because she was, well, very attractive. She was also very nice but guys didn’t care about that. All they saw was how cute she was. Suddenly Nicole was very uncomfortable at the thought that she had just brought them a piece of eye candy to stare at all night.

“What the Hell!” Wynonna rushed over and shoved Nicole by the shoulder to interrupt her sudden panic about the boys ogling Waverly all night. 

“What?” Nicole stumbled to the side slightly then fixed her sister with a scowl. 

“You brought HER here?” Wynonna motioned to Waverly who was only a few feet away and had definitely heard her displeasure. In fact, everyone had heard it.

“You told me I could” Nicole shrugged and motioned to Waverly with a flick of her hand.

“I didn’t know it was HER!” Wynonna aggressively motioned her hand a few more times toward Waverly now.

“Stop” Nicole swatted Wynonna’s hand out of the air and scowled at her. “You’re making a scene” She grabbed her sister’s arm and pulled her away from the rest of the group a few steps before lowering her voice to whisper to her firmly “You promised you’d be polite.”

“You brought a Jones here, dude” Wynonna ripped her arm out of Nicole’s grip with a growl. “So not cool. You know we’re not supposed to talk to them.”

“Why not?” Nicole huffed out a disgusted sounding laugh. “Because something that happened when both of us were too young to remember? Because our nutsack of a father, who doesn’t like anyone, says they are bad people? Wynonna, grow up. What has she ever done to you?”

“Remember when I got suspended last year?” Wynonna flung her arm out to once more motion to Waverly. “She ratted me out.”

“You lit the gym on fire” Nicole hissed the words through her teeth. “You could have killed someone.”

“Oh so you’re on her side now?” Wynonna gave an offended sounding huff and backed up from her sister. 

“Wynonna, this isn’t-” Nicole sighed and lifted her hand to pinch at the bridge of her nose. Her head gave a shake and she threw her hands out to her sides in a full arm shrug “I knew this was a bad idea.”

“Should we intervene?” Chrissy Nedley leaned in and whispered to Waverly. The entire group was watching the sisters bicker.

“This is fascinating” Waverly shook her head to stop the girl from going over there. She was glued to the interaction between the sisters. She was making so many mental notes to write down later.

“Ladies, ladies” Bryce Cooper came over to the sisters now and gave them both a wide, charming smile. He slid his arms around both their shoulders and looked between them a few times “How about we all chill out, yeah? There is enough room on this roof for all of us. Let’s not kill the vibe.”

Wynonna rolled her eyes and glared at her sister. She then shook her head and slipped out from under Bryce’s arm. She pointed at Nicole and hissed out softly “Keep her away from me.”

Nicole lifted her hands in surrender and rolled her eyes much like Wynonna just had. 

When it looked like the girls had given up their fight, Bryce turned around with his arm still around Nicole’s shoulders and grinned proudly “Alright, that’s what I’m talking about!”

“B-Train’s smooth moves work again!” Perry Crofte gave an excited cheer.

At the same time, in the exact same tone, with the exact same mannerisms Nicole and Wynonna both let out a sputtering laugh and mumbled in amusement “B-Train.”

Realizing what they had done, the sisters glanced at one another and shared a smile. That was it. Wynonna was still annoyed but in that moment her anger faded and they knew that it was going to be a fun night.

Waverly’s eyebrows lifted when she saw the sisters have the exact same reaction to the nickname the hockey players used for Bryce. A soft smile came to her lips. With what she had witnessed between the sisters already that night she was almost certain the DNA test would come back saying Nicole and Wynonna were related.

“Sorry about that. I did try and warn you” Nicole approached Waverly with an apologetic look on her face as she once more stuffed her hands nervously into her pockets.

“Forget about it” Waverly gave a flick of her hand to brush away the notion that Nicole had anything to apologize for. She gave the girl a smile and motioned to Chrissy beside her “You know Chrissy, right?”

“The principal’s daughter” Nicole nodded and gave the girl a soft smile. “I didn’t know you and my sister were friends.”

Chrissy just shrugged her shoulders and glanced over at Wynonna who was already sitting on one of the boys’ lap “Friends isn’t the right word. We hang with some of the same people pretty regularly but…” She shook her head and looked back to Nicole “...we definitely won’t be painting each other’s nails and having a sleepover any time soon.”

Nicole gave a single nod. A lot of people felt that way about Wynonna. It kind of upset her. She knew that if people could see the version of Wynonna that she got to see that a lot of people would really enjoy her. She was kind, funny, and loyal to a fault. But for some reason Wynonna had walls built on all sides of her. Nicole wished her sister would let more people in.

“You want a drink?” Chrissy motioned to the cooler near her feet with a smile.

“No thanks” Nicole shook off the offer then glanced at Waverly. She saw the girl watching her closely and she felt heat rush through her entire body. She drew in a shaky breath then motioned to Waverly and gave a shrug “You look like you have your science face on.”

Waverly let out an amused laugh and nodded a few times in agreement. She then motioned to where Wynonna was across the roof and shrugged “You were totally right. This was a great idea for me to come observe you two together. I can see a lot of similarities in the two of you.”

“Really?” Nicole arched an eyebrow curiously and glanced behind herself to her sister. A slight smile flickered to her lips. She liked the idea that she was similar to Wynonna. Her sister had a lot of amazing qualities about her. She shook the thought away and looked back to Waverly “Like what?”

“You’ll just have to wait until I show you the list tomorrow” Waverly gave the girl a playful wink. 

Nicole bit her lip shyly and gave a little nod. She let her eyes linger on Waverly for a few seconds and she felt her heart skip a beat when the girl’s eyes met her own. She couldn’t believe it. She was hanging out with Waverly outside of school and outside of their project. As annoying as her sister was she would have to be sure to thank her, in her mind, for forcing her to come hang out with the group tonight..

“Hey” Waverly saw Nicole kind of drift off into thought and wondered if she had said something to upset her. She reached out and put her hand gently on her arm and when Nicole focused back on her she gave a smile “Just relax, alright? Let’s put the project on the back burner for the night and just have a good time.”

“Totally” Nicole let out a shaky breath as a wide smile spread across her lips. She couldn’t take her eyes off of Waverly. This was all too much to wrap her head around. 

“Totally” Waverly repeated, laughing the word out softly, as her hand rubbed up and down Nicole’s arm a few times in a comforting motion. 

Wynonna’s eyebrows furrowed as she watched her sister from where she sat on a hay bale across the rooftop. She had caught sight of her sister talking quietly with Waverly and immediately focused in on them. Now, seeing the girl touching her sister, she felt her stomach knot with a white hot heat. It made her sick that Nicole was hanging out with Waverly Jones. She was snotty, bratty, and looked down her nose at people she felt were beneath her. It was no secret that the Jones family thought the Earps were far beneath them. She wondered what exactly Waverly’s plan was. How was she going to manipulate her little sister? No she did not like this situation at all.

Waverly saw the way Wynonna was looking at her. Nicole’s attention had shifted to answer a question Chrissy had asked and that is when Waverly caught the look from the older Earp. She narrowed her eyes on the girl and returned the glare. She would not be intimidated by Wynonna Earp. She had always been nasty to her, for no particular reason, so it was hard for Waverly to give the girl the benefit of the doubt that she was a good person. But she was not a vengeful person and she legitimately liked Nicole so she would do whatever it took not to upset her friend. If that meant ignoring Wynonna then she could do that. She had to admit, though, she kind of liked knowing that her being friends with Nicole was annoying Wynonna. It was a small victory, but a victory nonetheless.

“I don’t like it” Wynonna mumbled to herself. She gave a shake of her head and looked away. She had a strange feeling in her gut that there was more to Waverly than it seemed. If there was one thing that Wynonna Earp always listened to it was her gut. It had never been wrong before. Not that she was aware of, at least.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.


	4. “The worst pain in the world goes beyond the physical. Even further beyond any other emotional pain one can feel. It is the betrayal of a friend.”

Wynonna had basically ignored Waverly the rest of the night. She did keep an eye on her, though. She wanted to make sure she wasn’t trying to manipulate her little sister somehow. Nicole was sweet and a bit naive. Wynonna had to protect her, especially when it came to Waverly. The girl could not be trusted.

Nothing worrisome arose for the rest of the night, though. It ended up being a surprisingly good time all around. Wynonna was still annoyed at her sister and she would have to make sure to tell her such on the ride home.

The group all called it a night at the same time because, well, there was school in the morning and the principal’s daughter was in the group so she would definitely be able to snitch on them all if she got in any sort of trouble. So they collectively made their way off the roof and said their goodbyes before parting ways to go to their respective vehicles.

“Come on, Red” Wynonna motioned to her sister to follow as she bid farewell to the last of the hockey boys. When she saw that Nicole was still chatting with Waverly she let out a frustrated grunt. “I’m not going to wait for you!”

“Give me one second!” Nicole yelled back at her sister, throwing a glare her way, before turning her attention back to Waverly. Her face softened and she motioned behind her with a sigh “Again, I’m sorry about her. I hope tonight wasn’t too terrible.”

“A few dirty looks won’t scare me” Waverly laughed very softly as she opened her car door. When she saw a look of worry on Nicole’s face at her words she shook her head and gently reached out to lay her hand on her arm “Hey, really, it was actually a pretty good time. We should do it again sometime. Only, you know…” She motioned to Wynonna behind Nicole and nodded “In a little less hostile environment.”

“Really?” There was no fighting the look of surprise on Nicole’s face at Waverly’s offer to hang out again.

Waverly saw the surprised look and let out a very humbled laugh. Her head nodded as her hand dropped away from Nicole’s arm “Yes, Nicole. We should totally hang out again sometime soon. Why is that so surprising?”

“I don’t know. I just-”

“Get your ass over here!” Wynonna interrupted with a shout from where she was now standing near her truck.

Nicole rolled her eyes in annoyance then motioned behind herself with a shake of her head “She usually has manners, I promise.”

“You should go” Waverly nodded. “I will see you tomorrow in class, alright?”

“Totally” Nicole gave a nod as an excited smile slid over her lips. She couldn’t help it. Simply being around Waverly made her happy and now the idea that they would soon have more time together, alone, was just mind blowing. She really felt like she might explode with happiness.

“Bye” Waverly lifted her hand in a wave as she stepped around her open door and started to climb into her car.

Nicole took a few steps backwards, her smile holding on her lips, as her hand lifted to return the wave. She kept her eyes locked on Waverly for a few more seconds before she finally gave in and turned toward where Wynonna had been yelling at her. Just as she did so she heard the screeching of truck tires and felt a spray of rocks and dust consume her. She stood there stunned as the cloud surrounded her then slowly dissipated as it fell to her feet. She blinked once as she realized that her sister had just sped by her, leaving her behind.

The shock took a few seconds to wear off. Once it did she blinked again and shook her head. As the red taillights of Wynonna’s truck faded in the distance she let out a huff of disbelief and motioned in the direction that her ride had gone “Are you fricken kidding me!”

“Did she just leave you?”

“Holy shit!” Nicole jumped at the sound of Waverly’s voice behind her. She thought the girl had gotten in her car and left. She whirled around and put a hand to her heart as her wide, surprised eyes landed on the other girl. “I thought you were gone!”

“Almost” Waverly reached out to lay a calming touch against Nicole’s arm. “I was about to pull out when your sister rumbled out of here like a bat out of Hell! She nearly hit me.”

“I am so sick of apologizing for her” Nicole shook her head as a defeated sounding sigh came from her lips. She looked Waverly over just once before a frown moved over her features “Would it be too much trouble to catch a ride with you?”

“It’s on the way” Waverly gave the girl a soft smile and motioned for her to follow as she turned and headed back to her car. The two of them made quick work of climbing in and buckling their seat belts. As Waverly was turned around, carefully backing out of the spot where she had parked, she spoke gently “Is she always this cruel to you?”

“She’s not the cruel one in the family” Nicole mumbled as she slid down in her seat a bit. Her eyes were focused outside the window as Waverly drove. She was embarrassed by her sister’s actions. Wynonna liked to play pranks and pick on her but she had never done anything like this. She really was a great big sister, always taking care of Nicole, but for some reason she had decided tonight she would be more like their father than usual.

“I’m really sorry you have to deal with that” Waverly still spoke gently. She didn’t know what to say. She could tell Nicole was upset but she had no personal experience to lend to the situation as a way of offering advice.

Nicole just shrugged. She was used to it. Willa had hated her nearly as much as their father did. She was his favorite so she pretty much mimicked everything he did. Their mother was always gone. Despite Ward demanding she give up the rodeo circuit she clung to it. Sometimes she could be gone for weeks at a time and when she was home Nicole was the least of her concerns. It was almost as if she felt obligated to stick around just to prove a point after news of her affair had come out. But Wynonna? She had always been kind. Mean on a playful, sibling level but never straight up cruel. She wondered if she had left her behind tonight as a way of paying her back for going through with the DNA test.

“I don’t get it” She finally said after a few moments of thought. Her eyes shifted and she looked over at Waverly who was quietly directing the car down the road. “You’ve been nothing but nice to me the past few days. I’d even dare say, you know…” She shrugged almost timidly now and bit her lip before she continued her thought “...we might be on the road to becoming friends?”

Waverly glanced over at Nicole and again a sweet smile came to her lips. She gave a single nod before looking back to the road “I think that is a pretty safe assumption.”

Nicole had to take in a deep breath. Somehow, even though she was completely embarrassed and totally upset, the thought that Waverly would want to be her friend still made her heart flutter. She bit her lip to fight off a smile then shook her head to continue what she had been saying “So I don’t understand why my sister hates you so much? She hates my father more than anyone so I doubt she would hold a grudge against you just because he said to do so.”

Waverly’s smile faltered a little. She kept her focus on the road and when she spoke her tone was more serious. “I can’t speak for her. I know I am not particularly fond of her myself but that is because she has gone out of her way to be cruel to me on a few occasions.”

“She was pretty mad that you nearly got her expelled for telling Nedley that she set the gym on fire” Nicole shrugged at that. When she saw that Waverly looked almost offended she quickly lifted her hand in a gesture to keep her calm “I would have done the same thing if I were you. That prank went too far.”

“See?” Waverly shrugged one shoulder and flicked her hand out in a motion as if Nicole had just proved her point for her. “It was dangerous!”

“I know” Nicole agreed again. “But I feel like that is a really dumb reason to hold a grudge against you. She is lucky she didn’t get arrested.”

Waverly just shrugged again. She glanced at Nicole and in the brief moment that their eyes met it was easy to see that she was not fond of the fact that Wynonna had gotten away with a lot of things just because their father was the Sheriff.

Nicole agreed with the look Waverly had just cast her way. She wished their father would punish her. She wished Wynonna would get in real trouble, just once. Maybe she would straighten up. But, as much as she pushed the boundaries of his patience, he never snapped to the point of throwing her in jail overnight. Nicole had a feeling that was because that would, again, tarnish the Earp name and he was Hell bent on keeping any more negativity from being attached to their family.

“I can’t tell you that I know what happened between our families” Waverly broke the silence that had settled in between them. “I asked once, a couple years ago, and my aunt just told me it was of no concern to me.” She glanced at Nicole and shrugged at the words. “I’ve tried to research it, you know? You have to assume that something like a family feud would have made headlines in a small town paper.”

“Find anything?” Nicole perked up a bit. She had never thought about trying to research what had gone on.

“Not really” Waverly shook her head and kept her eyes on the road. She was quiet for a few moments before she cleared her throat and finally glanced at Nicole. “I remember once when I was about eight. My aunt and I were in the grocery store and there was a big ruckus a few aisles away. Shouting and what not. She told me to ignore it but I didn’t listen. I’ve always been the curious type” She glanced at Nicole again as a smirk rose on her lips. 

“You? Curious? I’d never believe it” Nicole let out a very soft laugh that said she absolutely believed that statement.

“Anyway, while she was deciding how much of something to get from the deli I went toward the noise. I remember finding your parents arguing about something. Willa and Wynonna were fighting over a box of cereal. And you…” Waverly bit her lip, glanced at Nicole again with a new kind of softness in her eyes, and gave a nod “You were standing at the end of the aisle, alone, trying to decide what flavor of pop-tart you wanted.”

“I remember that” Nicole laughed very lightly and nodded as the memory came back to her. “You asked me why my family was so loud and-”

“You just shrugged and told me it’s never quiet at home” Waverly finished Nicole’s sentence with a laugh. “Then I asked you what you were doing all alone and-”

“I said I liked it better that way” Nicole finished Waverly’s sentence now. A smile of delight had risen on her lips at the memory they were sharing. She remembered it clearly. It was the first time she had ever met Waverly. She remembered it because she had wished the nice girl from the store could have been her friend but she hadn’t gotten her name. She didn’t realize it then but she was pretty sure that was the moment her crush had formed.

“You told me no one ever noticed you anyway” Waverly frowned as the memory continued to play out in her mind. “I remember feeling so sad for you.”

“That’s still true today” Nicole shrugged the notion away. She glanced at Waverly and when their eyes met for another brief moment she felt her stomach tie into a knot. She was still completely stunned at how well they got along. She always thought of Waverly as this unattainable person. Someone not of this world. A fantasy of a person that you could merely dream about meeting. But somehow she had gotten lucky. She had not only been able to meet her but become friends with her. Never in the thousands of hours she had spent thinking of the girl could she had ever imagined this as an option.

“That’s not true” Waverly’s head shook. Her eyes left the road and her gaze landed very gently on Nicole. She drew in a deep breath as a hand reached over to lay gently against Nicole’s knee in a comforting touch “I notice you.”

A sizzling heat radiated from where Waverly touched Nicole’s leg. It moved in all directions like lightning. Her toes went numb. Her stomach flinched. Her heart skipped a beat. Even her ears pricked with warmth. She felt herself tremble and all she could do was nod. The look in Waverly’s eyes and the words she spoke had completely left her breathless.

Waverly arched an eyebrow when she was once more met with silence. Her eyes flickered from the road back to Nicole. She looked at her carefully. Nicole was hard to read. She had a very bizarre reaction to a lot of normal things. Well, normal things to Waverly. Perhaps Nicole was not used to any sort of affection from anyone. Waverly didn’t know a lot about the family but the brief interactions she had had with Wynonna led her to believe that there was not a lot of warmth. She wondered if Nicole got hugged regularly.

“Cherry” Nicole finally blurted out, seemingly randomly, as she found words again. Well, one word. A very out-of-context word.

“What?” Waverly laughed because it had been so unexpected.

“You recommended the cherry pop-tarts because they were your favorite” Nicole felt her heart thundering so hard in her chest she was afraid Waverly would hear it. She had no idea why her brain had suddenly decided to choose that moment to return to functioning.

Waverly’s laugh turned from surprised to amused and she gave a single nod of her head “They are my favorite. I am surprised you remembered that.”

“I guess I am good with the small details” Nicole just shrugged and pretended to be baffled herself. Honestly, she remembered it because from that day forward she only ever wanted cherry. If her mother brought home any other flavor she refused to eat it. She felt like maybe, if she ate only cherry ones, the nice girl from the grocery store would want to be her friend.

Just then Waverly pulled the car to a stop. They were just outside the fence of the Homestead. She did not want to pull in because she wasn’t sure how her parents would react when they saw who had given her a ride home. So she put the car in park and turned to look at Nicole a little better now “When my aunt found me that day she told me that I needed to stay away from your family. When I asked why all she said was…” She licked her lips and her brows creased together in a bit of a frown. She wasn’t really sure, to this day, what the words had meant. She also wasn’t sure how Nicole would feel about them “....those people are selfish and we don’t associate with selfish people.”

“What?” Nicole blinked once. She stared in disbelief for a few moments. She was trying to wrap her head around what she had just heard. Sure, her family was full of self-centered assholes but that wasn’t a reason to hate them. Well, maybe, if you were a part of the family. But from the outside looking in? That seemed petty. She shook her head and let out a huffed breath “Selfish?”

“I don’t know” Waverly reached out and once more placed her hand on Nicole’s knee. “That’s just what she said.”

Nicole gave a nod as her eyes landed on where Waverly’s hand rested on her leg. She bit her lip and reached out gently toward her hand. Before she covered it, though, she drew her fingers back and looked up quickly. She gave her a nod before motioning behind herself “Thanks for the ride, Waverly.”

Waverly’s brow lifted and pulled her hand back as Nicole reached to open the door. “Wait.”

“Really” Nicole had already climbed out of the car and she was leaning over to look back into it now. She gave another nod and smiled very gently at the other girl “Thanks. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Okay” Waverly spoke weakly and nodded as Nicole shut the door. She wondered if she had offended her with what she had just said. The words weren’t her own. They were what her aunt had said to her many years before. She had just wanted to try to help Nicole in any way she could. Maybe she should have kept that to herself. She let out a heavy sigh and watched until Nicole was nearly to the house before she put her car in gear and headed for her own home.

“Have fun with your girlfriend?” Wynonna snarled from where she was sitting on the railing of the porch just outside the door of the Homestead.

“You left me. What other choice did I have?” Nicole stomped up the wooden steps then turned to glare at her sister.

“You could have walked” Wynonna shrugged as if that should have been obvious.

“Ten miles?” Nicole huffed and motioned vaguely out into the vast darkness that had blanketed their city.

“I don’t like you hanging out with her” Wynonna turned now and hopped down from where she had been perched.

“You can’t tell me who I can hang out with” Nicole folded her arms defiantly.

“I can tell daddy” Wynonna motioned toward the door of the Homestead with another shrug of her shoulders.

“Snitches get stitches” Nicole mimicked Wynonna’s voice as she repeated a phrase she had heard her older sister say more times in her life than she could count.

“Yeah, well, I think he would want to know you were running around with the enemy” Wynonna folded her arms now, mimicking Nicole’s stance.

“The enemy?” Nicole coughed out the question through a laugh and gave her head a shake. “You don’t even know what happened between them. Why are you so determined to hold a grudge against people you don’t even know? Because daddy said so? Since when do you so blindly follow daddy’s orders.”

“You have no idea” Wynonna pointed in Nicole’s face as she hissed out the words. “You have no fricken clue about what you’re doing with her. She can’t be trusted.”

“I don’t care what you say” Nicole waved off her sister’s threatening look and rolled her eyes. “She’s nice, we get along, and, frankly, I like that it pisses you off.”

Wynonna lunged at her sister, shoving her in the chest as firmly as she could. The motion caused Nicole to stumble backwards and within just a few steps Wynonna had her little sister pinned back against the wall. She brought her face within just an inch of Nicole’s and when she spoke it was barely a whisper but it came out with more anger than she had ever used toward her sister “You don’t want daddy to know what you’re up to. You think he’s a shit eater now? He’ll open a whole new can of shit to feast on if he finds out you’re involved with her.”

“Get off of me” Nicole grunted as she used her hands to try and pry Wynonna’s wrists away from where they were pinned against her chest, rendering her motionless.

“I am trying to protect you” Wynonna’s tone softened just a little bit. For a split second there was a flash of concern in her eyes for her little sister. Then it faded and she used her hands to push against Nicole’s chest as if to emphasise her point. “So stay away from her.”

“I’m sick of you telling me what to do” Nicole growled as her eyes narrowed in a fiery glare at her sister.

“This is for your own good, Patch” Wynonna’s tone dropped again and this time the concern stayed on her features. “Daddy will go apeshit.”

“No big loss there” Nicole tried to shove Wynonna away again. She used all her might to try and push off the wall. When both escape attempts failed she focused back on her sister and shook her head “I am so sick of trying to please a man who doesn’t give two shits about me, Wynonna. Screw him. I am going to do whatever the Hell I want.”

“What about me?” Wynonna’s hands moved to grab hold of Nicole’s shoulders and she gave her a bit of a shake as if she were trying to jolt some sense into her. “Don’t you care about what I think?”

“You’re holding a grudge because she tattled on you. Grow up” Nicole used the momentary shift of Wynonna’s bodyweight and shoved both of her hands right into the middle of Wynonna’s chest. Ths caused her sister to stumble back against the railing of the porch.

“You don’t know the half of it,” Wynonna caught herself against the railing and turned to look at her sister with wide eyes. “She’s not as goody good as she seems!”

“Innocent until proven guilty” Nicole huffed out in annoyance and gave her head a shake at her sister. “So until you come up with something better than her tattling on you I’m going to draw my own conclusions.” With the last of her words she turned and started for the door.

“She almost got daddy fired” Wynonna blurted out quickly when she saw her sister was walking away.

Nicole stopped in her tracks. She let the words her sister had said bounce around her head for a few seconds before they fully processed. Her brows knitted together and she slowly turned around. She fixed Wynonna with an expectant look and shook her head “What?”

“Remember two years ago when daddy and momma were arguing a lot?” Wynonna motioned to the house that held their parents.

“They always argue a lot” Nicole rolled her eyes because that didn’t prove anything. She had gotten so used to them fighting that she had learned to tune it out and not pay attention.

“No, this was different. Someone had brought up an accusation that daddy was illegally taking money from the hospital” Wynonna shook her head at the words because they still sounded ridiculous to her. Their father was not smart enough for that.

“What?” Nicole laughed the words out and shook her head because it was absolutely ludicrous to think that their father could pull that off.

“I know” Wynonna nodded in agreement to the fact that neither of them believed the man could do that. “But apparently it was a big deal. He was suspended without pay. They investigated him for months. He nearly lost his job. He nearly went to jail.”

“Well apparently he was innocent” Nicole shrugged at that.

“But the accusations really hurt him. He was going to try and become a Mountie until these claims came out and he was denied the chance” Wynonna motioned again to the house before letting out a sad sounding sigh. 

“I didn’t know that,” Nicole frowned. She, for the first time in her life, felt bad for her father.

“Well, he’s kind of a knob gobbler and never talks to you” Wynonna gave her sister a sad frown. “But, anyway, it was Waverly” She added quickly and motioned behind her to where the girl had dropped her sister off earlier. “She’s the one that ruined his career.”

“Wh-what?” Nicole stammered out in surprise. She blinked once then shook her head “Why?”

Wynonna shook her head as well “I honestly don’t know. I can only guess it was done to get back at him for whatever he did to her family.”

“So you have no idea what happened between them either?” Nicole arched an eyebrow in a way that told her sister that now was not the time to lie to her.

“Honestly, Patch, I have no idea” Wynonna’s tone was even and her eyes never looked away from her sister’s.

“Have you ever asked?” Nicole’s eyebrow arched higher now.

“You think I’m nuts?” Wynonna snorted out a laugh and took a step toward her sister now that tensions had eased. “Ain’t no use rocking the boat when I know it’ll do no good.”

Nicole let out a heavy sigh and shook her head “It’s really sad that we can’t trust our own parents.”

“Yeah, well” Wynonna just shrugged because she had nothing to say. Their situation was balls. Their parents were hiding something, their father was a rotting nutsack of a man, and no one in town liked them enough to tell them the truth. She stepped up next to Nicole and threw her arm around her shoulders “Lucky for you there is one person in this family that has your back.”

“Except for tonight” Nicole grumbled and tossed her sister’s arm off of her shoulders and stepped away from her. She frowned at her and shook her head “That wasn’t cool, Wynonna. I know you were super pissed that I invited Waverly but you told me to.”

Wynonna rolled her eyes and threw her hand out to the side in a sort of full arm shrug “So maybe I overreacted by leaving you behind. I’m sorry.”

“Have I done something to offend you?” Nicole asked a little more softly than she had meant to. “Because you’ve been kind of a dick to me since I told you I wanted to do the DNA test.”

Wynonna just sighed at that. “This again?”

“You can’t blame me for needing to know the truth, Wynonna.” Nicole threw her hands out to the side in frustration “I thought out of everyone, you’d understand. I thought you’d have my back. But you’ve been throwing a silent fit for days now!”

“I don’t want to lose you!” Wynonna shouted a little louder than she had intended. When she realized what she had done her eyes went wide. She was not used to being so open with her emotions. She could see the surprised look on her sister’s face which caused her to let out a deflating sigh “I am scared, Nicole. Because, no matter what that test says, I feel like things will never be the same.”

“You don’t think I’m his?” Nicole’s voice trembled as she spoke.

“I’m not saying that, Patch” Wynonna stepped closer to her sister now. She gently put a hand on Nicole’s shoulder and looked her right in the eyes. “I feel like if you don’t get the answer you want it’s going to change you and, for what it’s worth, I kind of dig the fact that you’re sweet. The rest of us are assholes, ya know? But not you. You always look at everything with optimism and I’ve always admired that. I just…” She sighed and let her hand drop away from Nicole’s shoulder now “....I just don’t want you to lose that.”

Nicole’s eyes fluttered in surprise. She had never heard her sister speak so openly and honestly about her feelings. Even more so she had never heard Wynonna say such nice things about her. She suddenly felt herself overwhelmed with emotion. She had to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat. Her head shook and she tried to clear away the lump with a few soft grunts before she spoke “No matter what that test says you promised me I’d always be your sister, right?”

“Right” Wynonna nodded just once. She could hear the emotion in her sister’s voice and she was fighting like Hell to not let it overwhelm her now, too. “No matter what.”

“Then I’ll always be that same girl, okay?” Nicole bit her lip to stop herself from crying. She blinked the sting of tears away as she focused her gaze on her sister. “As long as you’re my badass big sister I will always be the sweet one. Deal?”

“Deal” Wynonna choked on the word. She tried to clear her throat to push the feeling away. When she saw Nicole extend her hand for a handshake to seal the deal she rolled her eyes. She grabbed her sister’s hand and gave a tug “Get in here you dweeb.” She quickly pulled her sister into a tight, loving hug.

The hug took Nicole by surprise. Since becoming teenagers Wynonna and herself had only hugged once and that was when the frog that they had secretly been raising in the barn had died. So this was definitely a rare occasion. But she quickly slid her arms around Wynonna and returned the firm squeeze. She smiled at the feeling of it. It was nice to get a reminder every now and then that, yeah, her big sister did actually love her.

Wynonna cleared her throat and stepped back from the hug after a few seconds. She gave her sister a sort of awkward shrug then motioned with her head toward the door to indicate they should go inside. “So you’ll stop hanging out with her?”

“She’s my lab partner” Nicole gave a roll of her eyes at that. She was so conflicted. The girl she had liked for so long had done something completely shady and tried to get their father arrested. She just couldn’t believe it. “I will keep all interactions with her strictly about science.”

“That’s fair” Wynonna relented with a nod as she reached for the door.

“But” Nicole stopped her before she could open it. She set her eyes on her firmly and gave a nod “I am going to ask her about it. I want to see if she is going to come clean to me. If she lies about it then I will ask Miss Bustillos if I can switch partners. I don’t care how smart she is. If I can’t trust her I don’t want to work with her.”

Wynonna let out an impressed sounding laugh and nodded at the idea “Yeah, totally. That’s a fantastic plan.”

Nicole smiled at Wynonna’s approval. When it came down to it, she had very little family loyalty. She had no reason to fight for a group of people who had barely cared whether or not she was happy. But as far as Wynonna was concerned? Her loyalty lived with her sister. She would fight to her last breath for her sister and now was her time to prove it to her.

Wynonna pulled the door open and motioned for Nicole to go ahead of her. As she followed behind her sister and they eventually fell instep side by side she glanced at Nicole and a smirk came to her lips “If you need help convincing Miss B that you should swap partners, let me know. I will gladly stop by anytime.”

Nicole glanced at her sister curiously as they started up the stairs “Miss B?” She huffed out a laugh and shook her head. Wynonna hated every teacher in that place so to hear her speak in a tone that held a hint of liking for the woman was a surprise.

“She is banging, Red” Wynonna’s smirk grew as her head nodded in satisfaction at the thought of the science teacher.

“Oh my god. You’re disgusting” Nicole groaned and shoved her sister away from her as they hit the top of the stairs. “I will never be able to look at her the same!”

“You mean you’ve never noticed?” Wynonna let out an amused laugh then motioned to her chest area “Do you have eyes? Her rack is spectac.”

“Spectac?” Nicole closed her eyes and shook her head as if she were trying to rid herself of the images that had just settled into her head. “Did you just shorten spectacular to describe my teacher’s boobs so that it rhymed?”

“Ya damn right” Wynonna clicked her tongue and gave her sister a wink.

“There is not enough brain bleach in the world” Nicole used her hands to tap at the sides of her head as if she were trying to bang the mental pictures loose in hopes that they would fall out. “Please stop talking!”

“I’m just saying!” Wynonna cackled. She was a big sister, afterall, and making her little sister squirm was one of her greatest joys.

“Kill me now” Nicole looked up to the ceiling and held her hands out as if awaiting a higher power to come swoop her up and end her misery. She shook her head then moved toward her room. Before Wynonna could say anything else she slammed and locked her door behind her. She pressed her back against the door and let out a heavy sigh as her head gave one final shake to try and rid herself of the images her sister had put into her head.

After a moment she pushed off the door and moved toward her bed. She was exhausted and she still had reading to do for school. She moved to grab her backpack before she plopped down on her bed. As she dug through the bag she felt her phone go off in her pocket. She perked an eyebrow and reached to fish it out. When her eyes fell to the message she had received she felt her heart jump into her throat.

“I hope I didn’t upset you with what I told you. I am just trying to help. Have a good night, Nicole. I had fun tonight.”

A smile moved over Nicole’s face. Her stomach came alive with butterflies. Her eyes moved over the words a few times, as if she were trying to find hidden meanings behind them, before she sighed out happily and fell onto her back. She clutched the phone to her chest and let the tingling sensations that Waverly’s message had brought to her move about her entire body freely. She had been thinking about her enough to send a message to make sure she was alright. That meant Waverly cared. Moreso it meant Waverly was still thinking about her. That thought sent Nicole’s head swimming. It was too good to be true.

Then she shot up and all the tingles died. She suddenly remembered what Wynonna had told her about Waverly. Her heart sank and she stared at the phone in horror. What was she going to do? She had longed to be close to Waverly for longer than she could remember and now she wasn’t even sure she could trust her. Her gut twisted and she felt like she might be sick. This was the very definition of being caught between a rock and a hard place and Nicole was still only in beginner rock climbing classes.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Nicole let out a heavy sigh from where she was leaning against the lockers in the hallway. Her eyes were moving around in search of Waverly while she chewed anxiously at her fingernails. She had no idea how she was going to ask the girl about what Wynonna had told her the night before but she knew she had to try. She had to know if she could trust her. The last thing she wanted to do was be taken advantage of because Waverly saw her as an easy target.

Her heart jumped into her throat when she finally saw Waverly come around the corner at the end of the hall. She pushed off the locker to stand up straight. This brought her to at least a head above most of the rest of the students and made it easy to track the shorter girl’s movements toward her. 

Waverly was surprised to see Nicole waiting near her locker. She wasn’t sure she had ever told Nicole where her locker was. She arched an eyebrow curiously as she approached because she could immediately see something was wrong. It was painted all over the girl’s face. When she finally drew close enough to speak she did so softly “To what do I owe the pleasure of this unexpected visit?”

“Look, Waverly, I need…” Nicole looked around and wondered if there was someone watching them. She shook her head and focused back on Waverly. Her brows creased together into a frown and she let out a soft sigh “...I need to talk to you about something.”

“Okay” Waverly nodded as her own face curled down into concern. She stepped closer to Nicole and reached out to gently lay her hand against her arm “Is everything alright?”

“No,” Nicole pulled out of Waverly’s touch. Her head shook when she realized what she had done. Her heart was aching because she had been so excited about getting to know the girl she had admired for years and now it was tainted. There wasn’t a way to express how disappointed she felt by it. She drew in a deep breath and tried to focus again. She needed to say it before she lost the nerve. She lowered her voice and leaned down to be just a bit closer to Waverly so she didn’t have to speak too loudly “I need to ask you something and I need you to be completely honest with me.”

Waverly slowly pulled her hand back from Nicole when the girl moved out of her touch. She immediately started to wonder if there was something she had done to upset her. Was it about what she had told Nicole the night before? She bit at her lip and started to consider that maybe she shouldn’t have told her. Then Nicole whispered to her and she quickly nodded her head at the words. She turned to fix her eyes on Nicole firmly and spoke without hesitation “I would never lie to you.”

“Not here” Nicole looked around in search of somewhere they could go that was more quiet. She was sure they would be late for class but she didn’t care. She could take a tardy on her record if it meant she got answers. She needed answers. She was so sick of being in the dark. 

“Here” Waverly motioned for Nicole to follow and the two of them started through the flow of students until they found a nearby bathroom. She pushed the door open, gesturing for Nicole to follow, before she headed inside. She looked around and when it seemed to be empty she turned and faced Nicole with a little nod. She folded her arms and eyed the girl curiously “Okay, what’s going on?”

Nicole walked toward the furthest wall of the bathroom, bending down to look under each stall on the way, before she decided that the coast was clear. She then whirled around and fixed her eyes on Waverly. She looked her up and down carefully, almost as if she were seeing her for the first time, like she were a stranger to her. She then shook her head and let out a heavy sigh “I don’t really know how to say this without it sounding like I’m accusing you of something terrible.”

“Just ask me” Waverly pulled her arms around herself more tightly. She suddenly felt extremely vulnerable. 

“Did you…” Nicole licked her lips and realized her mouth was dry. She closed her eyes and cleared her throat before trying again. She gave a nod and opened her eyes again. When she saw Waverly watching her she threw her arm out in a sort of defeated shrug and shook her head “Did you accuse my dad of taking bribe money from the hospital so that he would get fired?”

It was easy to see that Waverly was shocked by what Nicole had just asked her. It had been the last thing in the world she expected to hear. She stared at her, unblinking, unable to wrap her mind around the question. Even the bell ringing above her head didn’t phase her. She was completely speechless.

“So it’s true?” Nicole sounded a little more distraught than she had meant to. She closed her eyes and lifted her hand to pinch at the bridge of her nose. She felt sick. The girl she had been crushing on for years was actually shady and backhanded. She was pretty sure her heart had just cracked in her chest. How could she have been so naive? She should know better than to trust anyone in this damn small town where literally everyone was corrupt.

“No” Waverly suddenly snapped back to herself. She blinked once to refocus on Nicole and took a few timid steps toward her. “Nicole, no, it’s not what you think. I-”

“How do you accidentally accuse someone of something like that?” Nicole felt a sudden sense of rage surge through her. It was the Earp in her. There was no such thing as the flight or fight response in that family. For them it was only fight.

“I didn’t!” Waverly lifted her hands in a gesture of surrender to try and keep Nicole from completely blowing up. “Not on purpose. I would never try and get someone fired! There wasn’t even any proof and-”

“Oh so you didn’t even have proof!” Nicole’s voice rose an octave as another wave of anger washed over her. She had never been this upset in her life. “I can’t believe this, Waverly. I thought my family was crazy. I thought they were being shit tickets who blamed their problems on everyone else. I thought this stupid, petty feud was blown out of proportion! But-” She threw her hand out to gesture at Waverly sharply as she growled her next words “-I never should have trusted you.”

“Nicole, please. If you would just calm down and let me explain what happened” Waverly shook her head and gently reached out to try and comfort the girl.

“Did you think I was an easy target? That I’d trust you and you could, once and for all, exact revenge on my family for some stupid feud that has nothing to do with us?” Nicole batted Waverly’s hand out of the way as she rushed by her, bumping her shoulder into the girl more fiercely than she probably should have.

“Nicole, wait! Just calm down and listen!” Waverly’s pleading fell short as Nicole rushed from the bathroom before Waverly could even turn around completely.

Nicole wiped at her eyes quickly as soon as she burst out of the bathroom. She didn’t want Waverly to see her cry. She was irate. She was wounded. She was upset for so many reasons and in so many different ways. She didn’t know what to think. All she knew was within the span of a few days she had felt both the happiest she had ever felt and the most hurt she had ever felt. Maybe she was being dramatic but right now she felt like things just couldn’t get worse.

In her haze Nicole had not been paying attention to where she was going. This caused her to run right into the meathead jock that had mocked her and Jeremy a few days earlier. The one that Wynonna had threatened by nearly snapping his hand off his arm.

“What the Hell!” The gorilla of a teenage boy grumbled as he stumbled back a step. His eyes focused on who had just rammed into him and he let out a snort “Well, well, well” He cracked his knuckles and looked Nicole over slowly “Out here all alone without your bitch of a bodyguard?”

“You watch your mouth. That’s my sister you’re talking about!” Nicole spat as she growled the words through her teeth.

“What you gonna do about it?” The boy coughed out a challenging sounding laugh.

Before she knew what was happening Nicole’s arm was flying forward and her fist connected with the boy’s jaw. 

The force caused him to stumble back and hit the wall behind him. He stared at her with wide eyes. It took a few seconds for him to process what had happened. Then, as if out of pure reflex, he pushed off the wall and rushed at Nicole. Within a few steps he was able to wrap his arms around her waist and tackle her to the floor.

Normally the impact would have knocked the wind out of Nicole had she not been seething with a white hot rage. But in that moment she felt nothing but an uncontrollable urge to cause the same amount of pain she was currently feeling. All of the times Willa and Wynonna had ganged up on her and pinned her to the floor, making her fight for her freedom, suddenly came in useful and she was able to shift the bigger body to the side just enough to roll him off of her. In a split second she was sitting on his chest, pummeling him with her fists in quick, sporadic blows.

The meathead of a boy was helpless to do anything but shield his face. He tried to wiggle free while at the same time trying to swat away each incoming blow. He was losing that battle and soon his entire face was bloodied from her fists.

“Nicole, stop!” Waverly had finally caught up to the girl and was staring in horror at what she had just seen.

Somehow the voice penetrated her blind rage and Nicole stopped her unrelenting blows. She turned her head in the direction that the voice had come from.

Unaware that Nicole had suddenly stopped her onslaught, the boy swung his hand out defensively and landed a heavy blow to the side of Nicole’s face.

Having not been expecting the blow, Nicole toppled off the boy and landed on the cool tile floor near him, clutching her face in pain.

“Shit!” Waverly gasped out when she saw Nicole tumble to the side after receiving the blow. She rushed over to the girl and knelt beside her, gently laying her hand on her back. “Nicole, are you alright? I am so, so sorry!” She bit her lip and fought off a wave of tears. She felt so bad. This was all her fault. She should have just told Nicole about the thing with her father and the hospital as soon as she asked what she knew about the feud. Now she wasn’t even sure the girl would ever talk to her again.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.


	5. "You may hate me but I can't hate you"

Wynonna’s boots squeaked against the tile of the hallway as she rounded the corner at full speed. She had heard that her sister had been in a fight and immediately left class to make her way down to the principal’s office. She rounded the last corner before she slowed down and smiled at the secretary who manned the desk in the main office of the school. “Please tell me the rumors are true.”

The woman who was all too familiar with Wynonna gave a roll of her eyes but nodded in confirmation. She motioned to the closed door of Nedley’s office to indicate Nicole was currently with the man.

Wynonna clapped her hands together once, let out a delighted sounding laugh, then marched right over to the office door. She ignored the secretary trying to tell her not to go in there and kicked the door open with such fervor that it slammed against the wall once it reached the end of the hinges. The noise startled both Nicole and Nedley where they sat. 

“Wynonna…” Nedley grumbled and motioned weakly toward an empty seat next to Nicole “Have a seat.”

“Did you really ground that overgrown toddler to a bloody pulp?” Wynonna looked at her sister with wide eyed excitement.

“Wynonna, this isn’t the time” Nedley stood from where he had been sitting and moved to close the door to his office that Wynonna had nearly kicked off the hinges.

“So it’s true?” Wynonna’s face lit with pure joy and amusement. She lunged at her sister and wrapped her in a tight hug “I have never been more proud of you!”

“Wynonna, stop” Nicole grunted and tried to push her sister away. Now that her adrenaline had worn off she was starting to feel the toll of the beating she had given and the blow she had taken.

“Dude!” Wynonna pulled back and gave her sister a pat on the back. That is when she saw the bruise starting to form on the outside ridge of Nicole’s left eye and her excitement faded. She grabbed Nicole’s chin and turned her face so she could get a better look. Her brows creased into a frown and she shook her head “I’ll kill him.”

“Wynonna, stop” Nicole pulled her head away from her sister’s grasp. “I started it, okay? He’s pretty messed up.”

“Well, good” Wynonna gave a firm nod at that information before she stood upright. She turned around now and that is when she noticed Nedley was standing there looking very impatient. She gave him a slow, cheeky smile and motioned to her sister behind herself “Nedley, my man! I don’t suppose you could forego calling our father about this?”

Nedley just shook his head and moved back around his desk. He motioned to the chair next to Nicole again then took a seat as Wynonna moved to sit as well. He cleared his throat and fixed his eyes on the younger Earp sister “As I was saying, Nicole. This is a very dire situation you’ve gotten yourself into. This is a suspendable offense.”

“Come on, man” Wynonna slid to the edge of her chair and put her hand on Nicole’s shoulder as she gestured to her with her other hand. “This is the first time she has ever been in trouble! And that kid is a complete ogre. How many complaints do you have about him bullying people?”

Nedley held his hand up to stop Wynonna from continuing. When the girl finally stopped talking he cleared his throat again and focused once more on Nicole “But since this is the first time you’ve ever caused trouble, and because the witness said it was in self-defense, I am willing to go easy on you.”

Nicole let out the breath she had been holding while Nedley was speaking. She gave a quick nod of understanding “Thank you, sir. I promise this will never happen again.”

“Yeah, totally” Wynonna chimed in now. “I am going to make sure she never steals my act again. There is only room for one wild child in this family!” She gave Nicole a teasing nudge then fixed Nedley with an overly wide smile.

Nedley rolled his eyes and gave his head a shake “You are suspended the rest of the week.”

“Deal” Nicole gave another nod. She was just relieved that she was not being kicked out of school. 

“And” Wynonna stood slowly, her fake smile growing on her face as she took a step toward Nedley “You won’t involve the old man? I mean, come on…” She motioned to Nicole and her smile turned into a pout “Can’t you tell how sorry she is? Does that look like the face of a trouble maker?” She motioned to herself and let out a very soft laugh “He has his hands full with me. There is no need to add to his troubles, sir. You know how busy he is, being Sheriff and all, so I think that it would be-”

“Wynonna” Nedley stood, his hand held up to once more stop Wynonna’s rambling. He gave his head a shake and motioned to Nicole. “I will not bring your parents into this, just this once, alright?”

“Hot damn!” Wynonna clapped her hands excitedly just once then moved over to pat the man heavily on the shoulder. “I knew you were a cool dude.”

“But” Nedley moved out of Wynonna’s touch and gave an annoyed roll of his eyes. “I can’t promise you the boy’s parents won’t involve him. If they do there is nothing I can do about it.”

“Oh I’m not worried about that” Wynonna let out a sputtering laugh and waved both her hands in a dismissive fashion. “I have so much dirt on him he wouldn’t dare say anything. He is terrified of my dad.”

“I don’t need to know” Nedley waved his hand a few times as if he were trying to bat away what Wynonna had just said. He shook his head and motioned to the girls with a dismissive flick of his hand “Just get out of here. And, please” He looked back at Wynonna with a more serious look on his face “Let this be the last time I see you for a while, too?”

“You really put the pal in principal” Wynonna gave Nedley a wink then turned and motioned for Nicole to follow her. She grabbed her hand and squeezed it tightly as they made their way through the halls and out of the school. 

Once they were outside Wynonna let out a delighted sounding laugh and side stepped so she was now looking at her sister as they walked “Dude! You got in your first fight! That is undeniable proof you’re an Earp!”

“Please stop” Nicole rolled her eyes. She looked down at her feet as she walked and gave her head a shake “I’m not proud of what I did.”

“What the Hell happened?” Wynonna’s excitement faded a bit as she fell instep beside her sister again.

“I was pissed” Nicole just shrugged at her words. “I was hurt. I was confused.” She let out a heavy sigh and looked up at her sister. She frowned and gave her head a shake “I just lost it for a split second. It was like I was blinded by rage. Then he was suddenly there and I was so mad and he called you a bitch and I just…” She lifted her hand and snapped her fingers together before dropping her hand to her side weakly.

“You defended my honor?” Wynonna put a hand to her heart and looked flattered. It lasted only a few seconds before she was laughing and giving her sister a playful nudge with her hand. “Seriously, Red, don’t feel bad about it. He deserved a good beating.”

“I don’t want to talk about it” Nicole snapped and fixed her sister with a desperate glare. She held the look for a few seconds before shaking her head and motioning to the truck they had just reached. “Can we just go home?”

“Sure” Wynonna frowned as she dug out her keys. She could tell Nicole was upset. She had been trying to make light of the situation but apparently that was not the right approach. She knew her sister would come around and talk about it when she was ready. So until then Wynonna would drop the subject. 

After Wynonna unlocked the truck the girls climbed in and silently rode back to the Homestead without another word. 

~.~.~.~.~.~.

When a knock came to the front door of the Homestead Nicole turned toward the sound with a curious crease of her eyebrows. No one ever visited and they never locked the doors so she knew it wasn’t a family member that had been locked out. It was definitely an odd sound to hear. They were left completely alone out there at the Homestead. It was kind of nice that way.

When another knock came Nicole stood up from the kitchen table where she had been studying while holding an ice pack to the left side of her face. She took a few steps and peeked her head around the corner to see if she could tell who was at the door by looking through the sheer curtains that hung on the windows. When all she was greeted with was a silhouette she let out a sigh. She would have to answer the door to figure out who was knocking.

She tossed the ice pack on the small coffee table as she passed and made her way to the door. She pulled it open slowly and peeked out of the small opening. When she saw who was on the other side she let out a frustrated grunt and pulled the door open with a little more force as a frown set on her face “I don’t want to see you.”

“I know” Waverly lifted her hands in immediate surrender. She fixed Nicole with a pleading look in her eyes and gave a nod. “I upset you. Please just give me five minutes to explain and then you can go back to hating me.”

“I don’t-” Nicole let out a heavy sigh and shook her head firmly “I don’t hate you, Waverly. That’s the problem.”

Waverly gave a single nod and slowly lowered her hands. She looked the girl over very carefully and a frown moved over her features at what she saw. Nicole looked defeated. She looked exhausted. That is when Waverly noticed the bruise that had circled Nicole’s left eye and moved over her cheekbone and she let out a soft gasp “Your eye.”

Nicole quickly looked away from the girl and lifted a hand to touch at the bruise. She winced slightly then dropped her hand and shook her head again “It’s not that bad.”

“Are you icing it?” Waverly’s voice dripped with the concern that was painted all over her face.

“You have some balls coming here, Waverly” Nicole didn’t want the girl to be nice to her so she switched back to being angry and changed the subject.

Waverly’s frown somehow grew. She folded her arms across herself and took a step back. She didn’t like Nicole being mad at her. They had barely started getting to know one another but she truly had enjoyed the time they had spent together. The girl was sweet and funny and had a charm about her that was very endearing. This version, though, was not pleasant at all.

“I wanted to explain what happened” She finally said as her eyes set on Nicole with a more serious, yet still vulnerable look “Just give me five minutes.”

“You have two” Nicole folded her arms and stood stiffly on the other side of the screen door as if she were standing her ground to prevent Waverly from coming in, even though the girl made no effort to do so.

“I was fourteen and was volunteering at the hospital. This is when I thought I might want to be a nurse” Waverly’s stance relaxed to show that she was not trying to challenge Nicole. She just wanted to be honest with the girl. She wanted Nicole to trust what she was saying, if nothing else. “I was doing inventory for the nurses when I saw your father across the hall in one of the administrator's offices. They seemed to know one another. I couldn’t hear what they were saying but it looked very business-like. Then…” She let out a sigh and shrugged weakly “...I saw the administrator handover an envelope of cash. I know it was cash because your dad opened it and counted it.”

“What?” Nicole blinked just once. Her head shook in disbelief and she let out a stuttering breath of a sigh “No, you’re lying.”

“I swear” Waverly put a hand to her heart. “But, Nicole, I promise I didn’t take it to the authorities or whatever you’re thinking. I had no idea what I had just witnessed. Maybe hospitals paid the police taxes or something, you know?” She threw her shoulders up in a defeated shrug “I didn’t know much about businesses or how they were run so the next day I went to the high school and asked the business teacher, Miss Collins, if hospitals made donations or whatever to the police department. I didn’t say anything specific. I told her I was doing an article for a blog on where public servants really got their paychecks from. That’s it, I swear.”

Nicole’s defensive stance had softened. She could tell by Waverly’s tone and the way she hadn’t blinked that she was being honest. This only confused Nicole further. She gave her head a shake at that and lifted her arm in a half shrug “If you didn’t say anything then where did the accusation come from?”

“Apparently Miss Collins and your dad had bad blood” Waverly flicked her hand out to the side then dropped it to slap against her leg.

“Surprise, surprise” Nicole rolled her eyes, which made her wince in pain, as her head shook slightly. “God is there anyone in this town that my dad hasn’t pissed off?”

Waverly had seen Nicole wince in pain and she immediately frowned. She lifted her hand to point at the bruise on her face and let out a sigh “You should really let me take a look at that. I used to volunteer at a hospital, you know?” She smiled just slightly at her attempt at lightening the mood.

Nicole couldn’t help the small smile that twitched at the corners of her mouth. Try as she might to stay mad at Waverly she was finding it impossible. The several years of having a crush were winning out over the few hours of betrayal she had felt. When she saw that Waverly had caught the smile, she gave in with a heavy sigh and reached for the handle of the screen door. She pulled it open and motioned for the girl to come inside “You really do have balls coming here, you know? If anyone in my family comes home to find you here they are going to flip.”

“I don’t spook easily” Waverly gave a dismissive flick of her wrist as she walked inside. She immediately noticed the ice pack that Nicole had tossed aside and moved over to scoop it up. She turned and held it up with a perked eyebrow, silently indicating she wanted Nicole to put it back on her face, before she gave a shrug “Where is everyone, anyway?”

“Wynonna went back to school. Nedley wouldn’t excuse her from the rest of the day and if she gets any more absences she risks suspension” Nicole reached for the ice pack and gently lifted it to her face. She once more winced in pain but did not pull it away from her eye. Once the pack was settled she focused her good eye on Waverly “Mom is on the road for another couple of days and the Sheriff is out pissing people off all around Purgatory, apparently.”

Waverly nodded in acknowledgement as she looked around where she stood now. The house was old, much older than the one she lived in, but it wasn’t too shabby. There were family pictures and old trinkets here and there. It was modest. She could definitely tell a few generations had grown up in the house. It was nice. Her home was so, well, new. She had always felt like a guest at a hotel there. She had grown up there but she still felt like everything was too new, too fresh, and she had to be careful with it all. This place definitely had it’s wear and tear about it. It was sweet to think about the stories the walls of the house held.

“Anyway” Nicole watched Waverly look around for a few moments. She felt her heart flutter because the fact that the girl was in her house was not lost on her. It was a daydream she had slipped into more times than she could count. She couldn’t believe it was really happening. She tried to shake the thought away and get back to the point of Waverly’s visit “You said Miss Collins and my dad didn’t get along?”

“Apparently he broke her heart” Waverly shrugged as her eyes came back around to look at Nicole. She smiled when she saw the tender look in the girl’s eyes. Nicole was looking at her the way she had been before this whole thing had blown up. She realized in that moment that she liked Nicole looking at her this way much better. “So when I asked about the hospital paying the police department she took it upon herself to investigate. She must have found something because she was suddenly reporting your dad for bribery or something. I’m not really sure. Like I said, I wasn’t really involved. My name came out after the scandal broke. Someone named me as the person who brought attention to the money exchange.”

“So you didn’t…” Nicole sighed and pulled the ice off her eye again. She focused a desperate gaze on Waverly as she spoke “...you weren’t trying to destroy my family as revenge for whatever happened between my parents and your aunt?”

“No” Waverly let out a sad sounding breath of a laugh and shook her head quickly. She moved toward Nicole and as soon as she was close enough she reached out to gently place her hand on her arm. She was relieved when the girl did not pull away from her. “I have no idea what happened and, honestly, I don’t care. It’s none of my business. It has nothing to do with who I am today, you know?” She shrugged and let her hand slide off of Nicole’s arm “But, of course, as soon as my name came out as the supposed witness to the crime every newspaper article brought up the feud and said I had done it in the name of vengeance.”

Nicole was relieved to hear this side of the story. Sure, Waverly could be making it up just to get on her good side again only to betray her later but Nicole just didn’t think that was possible. There was something in Waverly’s eyes, her gorgeous brown eyes, that told Nicole she was being completely truthful. That, quite frankly, was enough for her. With that thought, she let out a heavy sigh “I am so sorry I freaked out on you.”

“I get it” Waverly nodded and lifted a hand to tell Nicole she did not need to go any further into an apology. “You’re going through a lot right now. I am sure if I were waiting on results that could potentially change my life I would be on edge as well.”

Nicole gave a nod then moved to sit on the couch. She tossed the ice pack onto the coffee table once more then lifted her gaze to Waverly “Honestly? I kind of forgot about that.”

“Really?” Waverly looked a little surprised by that. When Nicole nodded to confirm she let out a soft laugh and moved to sit next to the girl “Well this must have really been eating at you because if it were me I don’t think I’d be able to stop thinking about the test.”

How was Nicole supposed to sit next to Waverly and tell her the reason she had been so upset was because she had a crush on her? How did she explain that she had not been mad because she thought Waverly was plotting against her but, rather, because she had felt heartbroken by the idea that the girl she had secretly admired for years had betrayed her? She couldn’t. So she just gave a shrug at Waverly’s words and looked down at her hands.

Waverly frowned when Nicole once more looked defeated. She could only imagine what sort of toll all of this had taken on the girl. She let out a soft sigh and reached out to gently lay a comforting hand against her shoulder. Her eyes fell with Nicole’s and that is when she noticed the red marks and tiny cuts all over Nicole’s knuckles. She let out a soft gasp and quickly reached out to take hold of one of the girl’s hands between two of her own “Oh, Nicole, you poor thing. You should let me clean these up.”

“It’s fine, you don’t have-”

“Stop” Waverly stood now and gave the girl a stern glare. She set her hands on her hips, looking very intimidating as she did, and shook her head just once “I know you’re used to flying under the radar with your family but you can’t do that with me. I am very detail oriented and I love to take care of my friends.”

Nicole felt her heart flutter as she looked up at the girl standing above her. She knew the girl was just being nice, a decent human being even, but that did not stop her stomach from tangling into a knot. The girl she had longed for actually cared about her? Her head was swimming. She felt like she might pass out.

When Nicole didn’t argue, Waverly smiled. She gave a triumphant nod then looked about where she stood “Good. Now where is your first aid kit?”

“We don’t have one,” Nicole shrugged. When she saw horror fill Waverly’s face, she let out a laugh. “We usually just use a washcloth to clean up any cuts. If it’s still bleeding we do have bandaids. They’re on top of the fridge, I think.”

“The fridge?” Waverly gasped in disgust and put a hand over her heart as if making sure it was still beating. She was appalled by what she had just heard. “The heat can melt their adhesive and warp their sterile pads!”

Nicole bit back a laugh. She had not expected Waverly to be so offended by the placement of their bandaids. “Who knew you were so passionate about medical supplies?”

“This is not funny” Waverly rolled her eyes and marched out of the room before Nicole could laugh at her. As she moved into the kitchen she let herself smile. She was so glad that Nicole had listened to her side of the story. She would have been devastated if she had lost the girl as a friend.

Nicole watched Waverly disappear into the kitchen. As soon as the girl was gone she felt a goofy smile move over her lips. She was still completely mind blown over the fact that Waverly and herself got along so well. Now, more than ever before, she was excited to see where their friendship would go. She didn’t have to tiptoe around the feud between their families any longer now that she knew Waverly didn’t give two shits about it either. It was a weight lifted off her shoulders. Now she could just go back to daydreaming about all the time they would spend together and how when the sunshine trickled through Waverly’s hair in just the right way it somehow made her look like an angel.

“So I got your homework, too” Waverly came back a few moments later with Nicole’s books from the kitchen table stacked in her hands. On top of those were the small box of bandaids. She gave a smile as she set the stack right in front of Nicole on the coffee table before she took her place on Nicole’s left. She reached for the damp washcloth she had slung over her shoulder with one hand while at the same time reaching for Nicole’s left hand “Alright, let me see the damage.”

“You really don’t have to do that” Nicole argued even though she let Waverly take control of her hand to start wiping away some of the dried blood. She had pummeled the kid with both hands and they were covered with little cuts and scrapes. They were also starting to ache.

“I kind of feel like this whole thing was my fault so I think cleaning your wounds is the least I can do” Waverly gave a nod, glancing up at Nicole as if daring her to deny it, before turning her focus back to her hand.

“It’s not your-” Nicole winced slightly as the washcloth moved over a particularly sore spot “It’s not your fault. If there is any blame here it definitely gets placed on the people who raised us and their inability to figure out whatever happened like adults.”

“You know the oddest thing about it?” Waverly glanced up again, catching Nicole’s eyes to ensure she was listening, before she looked down at what she was doing again “My aunt is one of the nicest people in the world. She is kind, understanding, and loving so it really blows me away that there is something out there in the world that upset her enough for her to hold a grudge.”

“Yeah, well, the Earps are a special brand of asshole. Pissing people off is our specialty” Nicole let out a disgruntled sounding snort. Her family really were some of the worst people.

Waverly smiled up at Nicole and gave a nod “So you think you’re an Earp?”

“Oh” Nicole bit her lip and looked down at her hands so she didn’t have to look at Waverly. “I mean, I don’t know. I hope I am because, well, it would be nice not to have to find a new family. Plus, Wynonna…” She smiled at the thought of her sister. She really was pretty damn fond of her. 

“But a part of you hopes you’re not?” Waverly lifted an eyebrow, watching Nicole carefully as she spoke. She did not want to upset the girl by making assumptions. She was genuinely curious about how she was feeling.

“Honestly…” Nicole looked almost ashamed as she brought her eyes up to meet Waverly’s questioning gaze. She gave a shrug of her shoulders and her head bounced in a nod “I kind of hope I’m not. It would be nice to not have to try so hard to get my dad to like me.”

“You’re not awful for thinking that” Waverly set Nicole’s hand down in favor of lifting her own to touch at the girl’s cheek. She was very careful not to brush along the bruising that had showed up near her cheekbone. It was a brief, comforting touch but she held it there as her eyes locked with Nicole’s. “He’s been terrible to you. It’s only natural to hope you don’t actually have to care about someone who doesn’t care about you.”

Nicole was certain she was about to pass out. Waverly was staring her right in the eyes, touching her cheek with the most delicate touch she had ever felt, and speaking right into the depth of her soul. This was it. It was too much to handle. She could feel her lungs closing up. She was going to pass out and die. Her cause of death would be swooning.

She managed, somehow, to smile. Her body seemed to click into autopilot to keep her alive. Her face turned very gently into Waverly’s touch before her head bobbed into a nod. She then, by some miracle, managed to form a few words in reply “I really hope you’re right.”

“Me too” Waverly bit her lip as a sudden shyness filled her. There was something about Nicole’s reaction just then that really got to her. Maybe it was the way her face had turned into her touch. She wasn’t sure. All she knew was she suddenly felt shy. Even though it was Nicole who had every reason to feel vulnerable, Waverly felt like she was exposed as well. As if they were sharing this intense, emotional moment together. She wondered why she felt that way. 

“Can we…” Nicole saw the way Waverly seemed to shy away and immediately thought she had done something to weird her out. So she cleared her throat and quickly shook her head back and forth before giving the girl an awkward sideways smile “Can we not talk about it, though? If I keep thinking about it I am going to go crazy.”

“Yeah, totally” Waverly laughed awkwardly and dropped her eyes back to Nicole’s hands. She drew in a deep breath to try and steady whatever weird emotion had just washed over her. She wondered if perhaps Nicole was making her realize something she had long been denying. Was Nicole’s bravery to get a DNA test unlocking Waverly’s deep desire to want to know more about her own parents?

A weird silence fell over the room as both girls sat with their own thoughts. Nicole watched Waverly carefully clean her hands and she wondered what the girl was thinking. Had she given too hard a googly eye and freaked her out? She sure hoped not.

Eventually the silence grew too much to handle any longer and Nicole finally broke it with a clearing of her throat. When Waverly looked up at her, she set a soft smile on her lips “So Nedley told me I only got suspended two days because of what the witness said. You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”

Waverly bit her lip guiltily and shrugged her shoulders. She had finished wiping away the blood from Nicole’s right hand now. She set it gently against the girl’s leg and just shook her head as her eyes focused back on Nicole’s curious gaze “I just told him what I saw. He tackled you to the floor and you fought back in self-defense.”

“Really?” Nicole looked a little surprised at that. She thought that Waverly had seen the entire thing which meant she had seen her throw the first punch. 

Waverly just shrugged again. She got up off the couch and reached for the ice pack that was now melting. She lifted it up and tapped her fingers against it almost nervously now. When she dared bring her eyes back to Nicole she just shook her head “I didn’t wanna tell him I saw you punch him first. I figured that would just get you into a lot more trouble and you were obviously already having a bad day.”

Nicole gave a nod and fought the urge to look away from Waverly. She wasn’t really sure what to say. No one had been this nice to her for no particular reason. She wasn’t used to it and it showed on her face. But she managed to give a genuine smile and breathe out a soft “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it” Waverly gave a quick flick of her wrist to brush the notion away. She turned now and headed back into the kitchen. She put the ice pack into the freezer and rifled around to find something else to put on the girl’s eye. When all that was available was a slab of frozen bacon, she let out a sigh and grabbed it. When she came back into the living room she waved the bacon at Nicole before moving over to hand it to her. “So while I’m here did you wanna work on our project a little bit?”

Nicole let out a soft laugh as she took the bacon from Waverly and put it to her face immediately. The cold soothed her instantly. She couldn’t believe how badly it was starting to throb now “I don’t even know what we would work on.”

“I’ve been working on my list of qualities that are potentially genetic versus learned” Waverly nodded as she motioned behind herself toward where she had parked her car when she had arrived. “We could discuss a few of those and decide which traits we can really focus on to prove we got them from earlier generations.”

“Sure” Nicole let out a soft laugh as her head nodded behind the slab of bacon. “We can totally do that.”

“Have you finished your list yet?” Waverly looked at her curiously. She wasn’t trying to make her feel bad if she hadn’t. She was genuinely curious how far along the girl was.

“Which one?” Nicole slid to the edge of the couch and reached for her notebook from the stack of books that Waverly had brought in from the kitchen. “The list of my traits? Because I haven’t really worked on that one.”

“What have you been working on?” Waverly asked with a soft laugh as she moved to sit on the armrest of the couch next to Nicole.

Nicole glanced up at Waverly and was glad she had a frozen pack of meat pressed to her face so the girl couldn’t see her blush. She had spent way too many hours focusing on the list of traits that Waverly possessed. It had started out as a list of basic traits and had kind of turned into an essay about every incredible, irresistible, or attractive thing about the girl she had been crushing on for years.

But she couldn’t admit that so she tried to just shrug it off and flip through her notebook to find the small list of her own personal traits instead “I’ve been a little distracted. I’m sorry.”

“No need to apologize” Waverly reached out to rub Nicole’s back quickly in a gesture to show she was not mad. She then stood up from the couch and motioned to the door of the Homestead “I am just going to grab my books and I’ll be right back.”

“Do you want a snack?” Nicole arched an eyebrow as she watched Waverly take a few steps toward the door. “I mean I haven’t eaten lunch so I was going to make myself something anyway.”

“Sure” Waverly smiled very softly at the gesture. It was very thoughtful. She had a feeling Nicole was always that thoughtful.

Nicole returned the smile as she stood up from the couch. She watched the girl walk out the door before she let out a dreamy sigh. She couldn’t believe that just a few hours ago she was feeling heartbroken over the girl because now she felt like she was back on cloud nine. She didn’t feel like anything could bring her down.

The two girls went their respective directions to fulfill their tasks. Waverly ran to her car and quickly fetched her backpack. She was so glad she had decided to skip school and come over to talk to Nicole. She couldn’t imagine trying to get through the day wondering if the girl would ever talk to her again. This was a far better way to spend her day.

Nicole wanted to throw together something to impress the girl but with one swollen eye and very little time she decided to grab a bag of chips and a few pieces of fruit. She shrugged at that figuring it was better than nothing. She would eat something decent for dinner once everyone else got home. She was on her way back to the living room when something came to her. She quickly rushed back into the kitchen and over to one of the cabinets. She pulled it open in a hurry and when she found what she wanted a smile came over her lips. She grabbed the box from the cabinet before turning and heading back into the living room. 

She quickly set the things she had gathered out on the coffee table before moving back to sit on the couch. She kicked her feet up on the table and tried to look as casual as she could while she waited for the other girl to return with her backpack.

When Waverly returned she saw the way Nicole was kicked back on the couch she eyed the girl curiously then let out a very soft laugh before motioning to whatever Nicole was trying to do “Are you comfortable?”

“Well you took so long getting your things that I thought I’d kick back” Nicole gave the girl her best teasing smirk from under the slab of bacon on her face. She liked how easily they got along with one another. The more time they spent together the easier their banter flowed. She honestly couldn’t believe all of this was real.

“Okay, drama queen. I did not take that long” Waverly rolled her eyes in fake annoyance before moving back to the couch. She sat next to Nicole as she set her backpack between her feet. She opened the biggest zipper and started to dig through it for the notebook that held the list she had been adding to diligently.

Nicole wanted to say any time they spent apart felt like forever but she didn’t wanna seem clingy or, well, overly dramatic. Plus, that was a little much, right? So she just laughed it off and motioned to the snacks she had gathered from the kitchen “I did manage to wrangle up some grub if you’re hungry.”

Waverly pulled out her notebook and set it on the coffee table next to where Nicole’s books were piled. Her eyes then settled on the snacks that Nicole had referred to and a very soft grin moved over her lips. She reached out and took hold of a certain box of snack food before giving a curious flick of her brows. She gave the box a little wiggle and laughed out lightly “Cherry pop-tarts?”

“I told you they are the only ones I eat” Nicole had to fight her smile from spreading. It seemed like Waverly was amused, at the very least, by her bringing out the pop-tarts. She motioned to the box the girl held and sat up from where she had been kicked back on the couch “I thought it was an appropriate snack considering we are talking about our pasts.”

Waverly’s giggle was airy as she nodded at the reasoning behind the decision from Nicole. She then reached for the top of the box and worked to rip it open “I haven’t had one in years, if I am being completely honest. You might have to split a pack with me.”

“It would be my pleasure” Nicole nodded a little too excitedly and watched with anticipation as Waverly opened the box then pulled out the foil wrapped pack that held two pop-tarts.

“You must really love poptarts” Waverly glanced up at Nicole with another laugh escaping her lips. She wasn’t sure she had ever met anyone like the girl she was currently attempting to share a breakfast snack with. She was positive and cheerful, charming in a subtle way, and always seemed to be excited about whatever was going on at the moment. She was also a mystery. Sometimes she would get inside her head about something and it was hard for Waverly to tell what she was thinking or feeling. They could work on that, though. Waverly would have to start pointing it out so that Nicole would be aware of it and start to share her thoughts instead of just looking like a panicked deer.

“I…” Nicole paused as she tried to think of how she wanted to continue the thought. She would never admit that she loved pop-tarts because they reminded her of Waverly. She definitely didn’t wanna say she had dreamed, once or twice, of a moment similar to this where they shared a pop-tart and it turned into a magical moment. There were usually a few more candles involved in those daydreams. She quickly shook off those totally inappropriate ideas and just motioned to the pop-tarts that Waverly had now freed from their packaging “...I guess I am still a kid at heart.”

“I like that about you” Waverly whispered as a smile crept over her features. As she reached out to offer one of the pop-tarts to Nicole her eyes lifted and they were met with Nicole’s gaze watching her carefully. For a split second she felt her heart stop. She couldn’t get over the way Nicole looked at her. She looked at her as if she were the most interesting person she had ever met. It gave her chills but, like, in a good way. At least she was pretty sure it was in a good way.

Nicole barely noticed the way Waverly seemed to lose herself in thought as she handed over the pop-tart. Her mind was racing with the fact that Waverly had just openly admitted to liking something about her. Did she mean that it was simply a pleasing trait or did she mean that she, you know, _liked her_ liked her? She would have to analyze the meaning of this as soon as Waverly left. 

For now, though, she managed to wrap a couple fingers around the snack. She gave Waverly a smile as her other hand pulled the bacon off her face. When she did that both of her eyes came fully into view and she drew in a deep breath to try and steady herself “I am glad you like at least one thing about me. Makes being lab partners a little easier.”

Waverly shook her head and tried to pull herself together. For whatever reason she was stuck staring into Nicole’s eyes whenever their gazes met. She couldn’t help it. It was like something had shifted and she was seeing the girl completely differently. What that something was, she wasn’t sure. Was it the silly gesture of bringing out the cherry pop-tarts? There was no way something that tiny could cause this sort of reaction, right?

Shaking the thought away she put a smile on her lips before looking down at the pop-tart in her hands “Trust me, Nicole, being your lab partner has been more than a pleasant surprise.”

“Really?” Nicole hadn’t meant to sound as surprised as she did in that moment but unfortunately she had no control over the way the word came out of her mouth. 

Waverly couldn’t fight the laugh that slipped from her lips at the way Nicole’s surprise came out of her just then. She gave a single nod of her head, grinning ear to ear, before she shrugged slightly “Really, Nicole. Why is that so hard to believe?”

“I don’t know. It’s just…” Nicole blushed at the way Waverly had just called her out for acting so surprised. She also blushed because, well, how could she tell the girl it was hard to believe because she had thought Waverly didn’t even know she existed. She just shrugged at herself and, though she wanted to look away from Waverly, she kept her eyes locked on her as she spoke softly “I’ve kinda wanted to talk to you for a while now but I thought you were too popular to acknowledge me.”

“Don’t be silly” Waverly’s smile faded. She set the pop-tart down in favor of sliding closer to Nicole and taking hold of her hand. She gave it a soft squeeze as she set her eyes on the other girl with a serious gaze “You could have said hello at any time. I would have been delighted by it.”

“Delighted?” Nicole was barely able to breathe the word out before it felt like her throat was closing around itself. She bit her lip and fought the urge to look away again. They were locked in an intense staredown and it was almost too much to take but at the same time she was afraid she would never feel this close to Waverly again if she broke eye contact.

“Absolutely” Waverly’s voice trembled through the word. She felt her hand shake slightly where she held onto Nicole’s. Then, for some unknown reason, she felt her gaze flicker down to Nicole’s lips. It was brief, barely measurable by time, yet she had done it. Why had she done it? Why was everything with Nicole so intense? What was happening?

Both girls jumped when Nicole’s phone rang unexpectedly and startled both of them. Waverly physically leaped about a foot away from Nicole as if she had just been caught doing something she shouldn’t have. Nicole, on the other hand, reached a trembling hand out toward where her phone was sitting on the table. She had to draw in a steadying breath to calm her trembling. She wasn’t sure if she was trembling from the intensity she had just been sharing with Waverly or the scare of the ringing of her phone. She was sure it was a little bit of both.

“Hello?” Nicole mumbled into the phone as she cast an apologetic look at Waverly.

Waverly drew in a few deep breaths herself as she ran a hand back through her hair. She was pretty sure she had been thinking about kissing Nicole just a moment ago and that was sending her mind racing. She had so many questions about what had nearly unfolded just then. She would have to have a very honest conversation with herself later.

“Wait, what?” Nicole shot up from where she had been sitting on the couch. Her eyes were wide with surprise. “Are you kidding me?”

Waverly’s focus shifted back to Nicole when it looked like the girl had just received some unexpected news.

“No, I can meet you. I’ll be there as soon as I can” Nicole gave a nod against the phone. “I’m coming right now.” Before the person on the other side could hang up she was ending the phone call and looking down at Waverly with panic on her face. “The results are back. I have to get to the hospital.”

“What?” Waverly stood up now with a look very similar to the one Nicole was wearing.

“Yeah. Can you..” Nicole shook her head and looked around herself. She had no way to get into town. She brought her eyes back to Waverly and nodded “Can you get me there? I can’t wait. I have to pick up the results right now.”

“O-of course” Waverly stammered and nodded quickly at the request. She then reached down and started to pack up her backpack in a hurry. “Absolutely. Yes, let’s go.”

Nicole was already halfway down the steps of the porch by the time Waverly had gathered her things and caught up. She rushed out to catch up and soon they were both in the car and heading into town. Waverly was going as fast as she dared. She wasn’t really concerned about getting a speeding ticket. She just wanted to make sure they arrived safely.

“Are you nervous?” She finally dared ask after a few moments of tense silence.

“Yeah” Nicole nodded bluntly.

Waverly gave a nod and realized that talking was not appropriate in the moment. So they spent the next few minutes in silence once again.

As Waverly pulled into the hospital Nicole felt her heart take flight. This was it. She was just a few minutes away from learning the truth. Would she be an Earp or would an entirely new journey begin? It was crazy the weight that just a few microscopic strands of DNA could hold.

“Do you want me to come in?” Waverly asked as soon as she was parked.

“No” Nicole shook her head as she pushed the door open. She got out in a rush and then paused. She felt her heart twist in her chest and she thought that she might pass out. How was she going to get through this? She whirled around and stuck her head back into the car “Will you stay out here? Just in case?”

“Sure” Waverly smiled and gave a pat to the steering wheel. “I’ll be right here for you if and when you need me.”

“Thank you” Nicole’s tone was sincere as she spoke. She wasn’t sure about much, especially not at the moment, but she did feel that no matter what happened she would still have Waverly as a friend and that was more comforting than she could ever say.

Before Waverly could say anything more in return, Nicole was gone. She drew in a deep breath and watched as the girl disappeared into the hospital. Her own heart was racing. She wasn’t sure if she was excited by the thrill of the unknown or nervous for her friend. Either way she would stay put until the girl came back and released her of her duties.

As Nicole moved through the corridors of the hospital everything seemed to fade away. It was as if she were walking down a silent tunnel. The only thing she could see was what was right in front of her. She had to focus. She had to make it to the lab to get her results. This was it. Her entire life was about to change. For better or worse depended on what was in that envelope.

~.~.~.~.~.~.


	6. “When everything goes to hell, the people who stand by you without flinching -- they are your family. ”

Waverly hummed along softly to the song that was currently playing on the radio in her car. There was barely any volume but sitting in a silent car made it easy for her to hear the song. Her eyes kept moving from the doors of the hospital to the clock on her dashboard and back again. She wanted to keep diligent watch just in case Nicole came out and needed to get away quickly. She had no idea why that would be the case but, hey, she wanted to be prepared for anything.

Ten minutes passed. Then it was a half an hour. Waverly started to worry. She wondered what had happened. Was Nicole alright? Had she gotten bad news and totally broken down? Did they have to sedate her and strap her down to a hospital bed to try and calm her down? That seemed extreme but, to be fair, she didn’t know Nicole too well and had no idea how she would react to bad news. Also, she had seen the girl pummel a kid twice her size earlier in the day so who really knew what she was capable of in the face of bad news?

Deciding to make the best of her time she reached for her backpack. She slid it over toward herself and started to dig out her notebook. If she was going to be stuck waiting she might as well keep working on their project. She let out a sigh at the thought as her hand dug around until she found what she was looking for. She slid the notebook out and over her lap in one easy movement. That is when a surprise fell, literally, into her lap.

Not only did she realize right away that she had accidentally packed Nicole’s notebook into her bag in her haste but she had also stuffed the pop-tart in there along with it. It was a little crushed, at least one third of it had already started to break away in pieces, but it was still very recognizable. This made Waverly smile. She reached down to take hold of the snack gently, as if it were more valuable than it actually was, and lifted it to take a better look.

She shook her head in amusement as she broke off a piece. She licked over her lips, almost as if she were nervous to try it, before finally lifting it to her mouth. She closed her eyes as she bit into the overly sweet snack. It was weird how strongly a sense could be tied to memory and as she chewed she was transported back to Sunday morning breakfast with her aunt when she was ten. 

As she swallowed the bite her eyes came open. They focused on the treat and even though it was admittedly disgusting it also made her laugh. It was such a tiny thing that Nicole had done, including the pop-tarts as a snack option that day, but in that very moment it made Waverly’s heart flutter. It was just another little thing to add to the ever growing list of things that she had come to admire about the girl. She was thoughtful. There was no way that was genetic because no one, as far as she knew, in the Earp family thought about anything but themselves. 

The thought of the list made Waverly’s focus shift to the notebook in her lap. She wondered what, if anything, Nicole had put on her list. She was curious to see how many of her own traits Nicole had noticed and decided to write down. She quickly flipped the cover of the notebook open and started to turn the pages one by one in search of said list. 

The first few pages were what looked like half finished essays for other classes. There were some obvious notes for history on one of the pages. Waverly took a moment to read those over because, well, she absolutely loved history and was curious to see which class Nicole was in. As she read over the notes a smile came to her lips. Nicole had great penmanship. She wondered now if that was a genetic trait. She would have to put that on her own list when she eventually got back to it. 

Finally she came across a page that had her own name scrawled across the top. Under that were a few basic traits that every human possessed. She laughed very softly to herself as she read them off in a whisper.

“Eyes. Smile. Laugh. Hair.” She shook her head and gave a slight roll of her eyes “You are very observant, Nicole.”

The list then turned into a scribbled mess with most of whatever had been written being crossed out. It was hard to make out what had been written because it seemed Nicole had scribbled repeatedly over whatever things she had put down then subsequently decided were not good options.

With a frown on her lips, Waverly turned the page to see if there was any more. There was no way Nicole, the smart and excited girl she had gotten to know, could be completely stumped when it came to making a list of things that were genetic traits. She was way too intelligent to have trouble with that.

Her thoughts were cut off as her eyes landed on the next page. She read the first few lines of what was written there and let out a gasp. She stared in complete surprise, her eyes flicking back and forth furiously as she read line after line. Each word she read made her heart beat faster and faster. Each new sentiment seemed to bring to life a new butterfly in her stomach. She couldn’t believe what she was reading and, at the same time, could not stop herself from continuing. She felt like she was intruding on Nicole’s most personal, intimate thoughts and yet she could not force her eyes to stop moving and her brain to stop consuming each stunningly complimentary word.

“Eyes. Her eyes are like a luke warm lake on a hot summer day. You know the one you stumble across on a hike in the middle of the woods? The water lays still, untouched for longer than you dare guess, with a surface like glass. There’s a quiet, a serenity, as you look over the surface and feel like you’ve stumbled across a secret you weren’t supposed to see. The way the green settles all around, unmoving, yet still somehow slightly swaying with the life of the world around it. In the middle there’s brown mud but it’s the kind you want to wade into just to feel it slide between your toes. That is what I see when I look into her eyes.”

“Smile. Laugh. Have you ever seen someone smile, or heard them laugh, and you thought you’d died and gone to heaven? Have you ever heard a piece of classical piano music played so beautifully you just shake your head in awe because there was no way that sort of thing really existed? Neither of those feelings compare to her smile. When her smile erupts into a laugh it’s like my very own heart is being lifted from my chest and sworn to her. It is like my lungs dare not breathe in fear of doing so too loudly. Time stops when she smiles at you. Everything is perfectly in place, like a masterpiece, and you can’t believe that you live in a world where you get to witness such pure beauty. Just when you wrap your head around that smile, it turns into a laugh and you find your soul leaving your body. You feel the peace of knowing that if this is the moment in which you die you have not died without the joy of living.”

“Hair. You know how a waterfall tumbles over the rocks in its path leaving behind a spectacular feat of nature? Every single strand of her hair manages to capture the awe of that tumbling beauty and bring it into a tangible item. I’d consider myself complete given the chance to touch a piece of nature that previously seemed impossible to grasp. She is so unaware of it which makes every piece of her all the more unbelievably beautiful. True, untainted beauty comes from the innocence of unawareness and she is the purest type of innocence the world will ever know.”

Waverly wiped a tear from her eye and glanced up at the hospital doors. Her heart was racing so hard in her chest she could no longer hear the radio. Her ears were hot, her cheeks flushed, by the sheer amount of blood that was rushing through her veins. She had never seen herself described in such a way. It was completely overwhelming. It was confusing. It was exhilarating. She had no idea what to think. One thought bounced around her head most prominently at the moment: How long had Nicole thought these things about her?

~.~.~.~.~.~.

“Nicole, sweetie, are you alright?” Mrs. Chetri crouched in front of where Nicole sat staring blankly at the envelope she had been given.

Nicole blinked. She gave her head a single shake. She had been staring at the envelope in her hands for longer than she even cared to know. She wasn’t really sure why. All she knew was the moment that envelope was in her hands was the moment it became too real. Had she made a mistake? Was it worth knowing? Had she inadvertently ruined her life? These and several other thoughts were cycloning around her mind, leaving all other life functions destroyed in its wake.

“Do you want me to call someone for you?” The mother of her best friend gently rubbed the girl’s arm in an attempt to comfort her.

Nicole’s head shook again. She drew in a soft breath and managed to peel her eyes away from the envelope. She blinked a few times when her stare landed on the older woman. It was as if she had forgotten to focus on things outside of the envelope. When the concerned face of the woman became clearer she suddenly realized all at once where she was and what she had been doing. She stood up suddenly, her eyes widening with a sort of panic “What time is it?”

“Just past four” Mrs. Chetri stood slowly to bring herself completely upright now that Nicole seemed to have come back to herself. 

“Shit” Nicole looked down at the envelope in her hands once more. She then folded it in half, tucked it into the inside pocket of her coat, and looked back at the woman with a frown on her lips “I’m sorry I distracted you for so long. Thank you for doing this for me.”

“It was no problem” The woman laid her hand very gently on Nicole’s shoulder to once more attempt to comfort her. “Are you alright? You can stay as long as you need.”

“Fine. Totally fine” Nicole’s nod was unconvincing but she had already turned and started to walk away before the older woman could attempt to stop her. She hurried down the corridor of the hospital, her eyes fluttering about. She was still coming back into herself and for a few moments she felt lost. She had been in that hospital with Jeremy more times than she could ever count and yet, at that moment, nothing felt familiar. She had forgotten where to go.

Then the door of the E.R. slid open and the cold air of the outside swept around her. She looked in that direction and that is when she remembered Waverly. Her heart jumped into her throat at the thought. She had left the girl waiting outside for far longer than was considered polite. She really hoped Waverly had decided to leave. She would not be upset to find the girl was gone. 

She moved outside quickly and made her way around the building to where she had left Waverly. To her surprise, as she rounded the corner into the parking lot outside the lab, she saw Waverly’s car in the same spot she had left it. A blush rushed through her entire body. She was so embarrassed that she had insisted the girl wait outside and then took as long as she had inside. There was no way anyone else in the world would have waited that long. But, then again, Waverly was kind of special.

The knock to her driver’s side window caused Waverly to scream out in fright. She had been so engrossed in what she had been reading that she had not seen Nicole come out of the hospital. She quickly slapped the cover of the notebook shut and stuffed it into her backpack as her eyes shifted to her window. When she saw that it was Nicole standing there she let out a shaky breath and pushed the button to roll down her window. “You scared the shit out of me.”

“I’m sorry” Nicole mumbled. She was sorry but at the same time she was still pretty numb so feeling much of anything, including sympathy, wasn’t really something she was capable of at the moment.

“It’s okay” Waverly could see the blank look on Nicole’s face and concern sparked to life inside her. Her brows knitted together as she looked the girl over once before bringing her eyes up to meet Nicole’s empty gaze “Is everything alright? You were in there for a while.”

“I don’t know” Nicole just shook her head and tried to blink a little bit of life back into her eyes. She could see that Waverly was concerned and that brought about the tiniest bit of a flutter inside her chest but that was about it. It was as if all other thoughts, feelings, and emotions had ceased to exist in the exact moment she had been handed the envelope.

“You don’t know?” Waverly’s frown deepened. Nicole looked defeated and it was absolutely breaking her heart. “What did the results say?”

“I haven’t-” Nicole’s eyes dropped to her feet. Her right hand instinctively moved over her coat to lay on the spot where the envelope was tucked safely away. It was as if she were protecting what was inside. Her head shook and she let out a heavy sigh “I need to find Wynonna.”

“Okay” Waverly wouldn’t argue. She shifted her focus for just a moment so that she could stuff everything back into her backpack before she moved it off the seat. She then looked back up at Nicole and gave her a little flick of her head “Get in. We can go find her.”

Nicole had wanted to argue that it was not a good idea for her to roll up to wherever her sister was with Waverly in tow but she was too weak to try. Instead she just got into the vehicle and buckled her seatbelt. She cast a sad looking glance at Waverly before shaking her head and motioning for her to drive “School’s out so she’s probably at home.”

“Do you want to call her?” Waverly started to guide the car out of the parking lot and back onto the road. She did not mind helping Nicole find her sister but she also didn’t feel like going on a wild goose chase would do either of them any good. She felt that the sooner Nicole could find Wynonna the better off she would be.

“Uh” Nicole dipped her chin in a flinch of a nod before her hand moved to her pocket. She managed to fish out her phone despite the fact that her hands were trembling. How long had they been trembling? She wasn’t really sure. She wasn’t really sure about anything at the moment. But she managed to find her sister’s number and press call on her phone.

Waverly’s concern had yet to fade. As she guided the car toward the Earp Homestead she kept glancing at Nicole beside her. She could only imagine what must be going through her mind. She was probably terrified of what the results said. They would undoubtedly change her life and that was a lot to be faced with. She admired how brave Nicole was for going through with the test.

“Hey, it’s me. Can you, um…” Nicole swallowed as she spoke into the phone. She had no idea why she was so nervous to ask Wynonna to be there for her when she opened the results. “Can you meet me? It’s important.”

Waverly pulled up to a stop sign and turned her attention to the conversation. It was twisting her gut in agony to see the life sucked out of Nicole. There wasn’t a single trace of all the delightful things that usually radiated off of the girl. She seemed like a shell of herself.

“You know the town sign?” Nicole had ended the brief conversation and turned her attention to Waverly. She stared at her expectantly and when she saw the girl nod in acknowledgment she turned her eyes forward “She’s going to meet me there.”

“Sure” Waverly flipped on her blinker and turned in that direction. 

The two of them sat in tense silence for the rest of the ride. Waverly wanted so desperately to comfort Nicole but she had no idea how to go about it. She tried to put herself in the same position and think about what she would want someone to say to her. All she came up with was the fact that she would want to be left alone. So she stayed quiet as she guided the car to the very outskirts of Purgatory.

The car rumbled to a stop a few hundred feet away from the sign. Wynonna’s truck was already parked next to it and the girl was outside throwing rocks at the picture of the stupid people in the car who looked happy to be driving right into the pits of Hell.

Nicole moved to get out of the car without saying anything but was stopped when Waverly said her name. She blinked once and turned to look back at the girl with a confused look on her face.

“Should I wait?” Waverly glanced at where Wynonna was now watching the two of them together.

“It’s okay” Nicole shook her head and actually managed to push a tiny smile up at the corners of her lips. “You’ve done enough already.”

“Okay, but-” Waverly spoke quickly to once more stop the girl from rushing off. When she saw she still had Nicole’s attention, she fixed her with a very serious look and nodded just once “If you need anything at all you know how to find me.”

“Totally” The smile on Nicole’s lips grew just slightly before she finally stood upright and pushed the car door closed.

Waverly felt her heart jump slightly in her chest when Nicole smiled at her. She hadn’t realized how much she liked the smile until she thought the girl was so consumed with worry that she may never smile again.

As Nicole moved toward her sister, Waverly turned her car around and headed back into town. Wynonna watched the car fade into the distance before her eyes focused on her approaching sister. She gave a motion to the vehicle then perked a suspicious eyebrow “What were you doing with her?”

“That doesn’t fucking matter right now” Nicole growled in response. When she saw the surprised look on her sister’s face she quickly shook her head and dropped her eyes to her feet. “Sorry. I’m a little on edge.”

“No shit” Wynonna reached out and put a hand on Nicole’s shoulder. She squeezed very lightly then dropped her head in an attempt to catch her sister’s eyes. When she was able to do so she gazed curiously at her “Everything alright, Patch?”

It was as if Nicole lost control of her actions in that moment because the next thing she knew she was throwing her arms around Wynonna. She squeezed her tightly, almost as if she were afraid she would lose her if she let her go. She felt tears burning behind her eyes but she was fighting like Hell to hold them back.

“Woah” Wynonna was caught off guard and it showed when she stiffened in surprise at the hug. But it faded quickly as her sisterly instincts kicked in and she wrapped her arms around her little sister to return the hug. She gave a little nod of her head, nuzzling her cheek against Nicole’s, before whispering gently against her ear “I got you, Patch, no matter what.”

The words were the tipping point for Nicole. She felt tears trickle out of her eyes and down her cheeks. She was so scared of what the test was going to say. She honestly didn’t know which result terrified her more. She hoped Ward wasn’t her father and she could escape his wrath to go find the truth. But that meant Wynonna wasn’t really her sister and that was her biggest fear. It didn’t matter what Wynonna said, Nicole knew that blood was thicker than water and her not being blood was bound to change their relationship forever.

Wynonna pulled back from the hug in favor of lifting her hands to her sister’s face. She held her gently, using her thumbs to wipe away the tears that had escaped as they slid down her cheeks. She never once pulled her firm, unwavering gaze away from Nicole’s eyes. Each time the girl blinked her red, watery eyes open she was met with the determined stare from Wynonna.

“I’m scared” Nicole finally croaked out as if that weren’t already obvious.

“You don’t have to read the results” Wynonna shook her head as one of her hands turned over now and she used the dry part of the back of her hand to wipe at her sister’s cheeks. “It doesn’t matter what they say, okay? You and I will always be sisters. We can just go on living our lives as we always have. Nothing has to change.”

“I have to know” Nicole’s voice sounded like it had been trapped in a bubble as she spoke. She cleared her throat to try and give herself more volume before she attempted to talk again “I need to be sure.”

“I know” Wynonna let out a heavy sigh as her other hand finally dropped from her sister’s face. She slid one of her hands into the sleeve of the coat she wore and lifted it up to Nicole’s face in an offering for her to use it as a tissue if she wanted to. “So let’s put on our big girl panties and rip off the bandaid, okay?”

“You could be a little more sensitive” Nicole rolled her eyes as she pulled Wynonna’s sleeve to her face and wiped away the snot that had run out of her nose.

“I’m here, aren’t I?” Wynonna’s face curled in slight disgust as she watched a streak of snot be transferred onto her sleeve. “And I’ve already told you it’s not gonna change shit between us. So let’s just Earp the Hell up and do this shit.”

Nicole let out a sigh as she released her sister’s sleeve. She reached into the pocket that held the envelope and pulled it out slowly. She lifted it to show Wynonna, as if the girl had not really believed she had results, before her eyes focused on the crease in the middle of the envelope. She ran her finger along it before giving her head a shake. She couldn’t do this.

“If you don’t rip that shit open in three seconds I’m gonna do it for you” Wynonna huffed out in annoyance. It wasn’t that she was upset to be there. It wasn’t that she didn’t support Nicole. She was impatient and had dealt with the mystery around her sister for way too long. It was a combination of the years of rumors around town and the months of obsession by Nicole. She was so over waiting. If her life was about to change she wanted to know sooner rather than later so she could start dealing with whatever came next.

“Give me a fucking second” Nicole pulled the envelope out of Wynonna’s reach and took a step back. She then brought it back in front of herself and drew in a deep breath. This was it. She had planned for this and dreamed about this moment and now it was here. The next chapter of her life could not start until she opened the envelope and read what was inside.

Wynonna folded her arms across herself and focused on her sister. She knew Nicole was far more sensitive than herself but she also knew that no matter what the test results said her sister was tough enough to handle it. She just wished Nicole believed that about herself. “Come on, Patch. I’m freezing my ass off here.”

“Wynonna, I swear to God” Nicole grumbled and, out of sheer annoyance, finally ripped the envelope open. She huffed out as her hand slid inside the tear and pulled out the result sheet. She cast an annoyed glance up at her sister before she looked back at the paper. It was folded up. She drew in a deep breath and used her fingers to slowly unfold the sheet and turn it so whatever was printed on it was now visible.

Wynonna took a step closer to Nicole as she looked over the paper. Her heart suddenly started to race in her chest. She was nervous. She had no idea why but for the first time throughout this entire process she was actually nervous.

Then it was quiet. It was far too quiet for far too long. Nicole’s eyes fluttered a few times as she read over the paper. Wynonna shifted a little closer. The sound of the rocks crunching under her boots was magnified by the silence that had engulfed the two of them.

“Well?” Wynonna was barely able to breathe out the word.

Nicole’s head just shook. She blinked once at the paper. She let out a heavy sigh and watched the warmth of that sigh rise into the cold air as a cloud. She blinked again. When she was finally able to lift her eyes up she was met with Wynonna staring at her in anticipation. She blinked one more time then gave a little nod of her head “It’s not a match.”

“Not a match?” Both of Wynonna’s eyebrows lifted in surprise. In that moment it was plain to see she had been convinced that Nicole was her sister. This was, honestly, the last thing she had expected to hear.

“He’s not my father” Nicole’s voice trembled slightly. Her eyes dropped back to the paper and she read it over again, quickly this time, before looking back to Wynonna. This time a laugh slipped out before she spoke again “I’m not an Earp.”

“Bullshit!” Wynonna sounded upset now. “Give me that” She ripped the paper out of Nicole’s hands and started to read it over for herself.

“I knew it” Another laugh escaped from Nicole’s lips. It wasn’t an amused laugh. It was the kind of laugh you let out when everything you used to believe in turns out to be a lie and you’re left wondering what in the Hell to do next.

“This can’t be right!” Wynonna thrust the paper back at Nicole as anger started to rise in her chest. She fixed her eyes in a scowl on her sister. No, not her sister. Well, her half sister maybe. She didn’t know. She felt herself start to breathe a little more quickly. Her chest was tightening in on itself “It’s wrong. The test was wrong.”

“It’s science, Wynonna” Nicole tapped the paper she held with the back of her hand and another huffed laugh escaped her lips. “I’m not supposed to be in this family!”

“You take that shit back right now” Wynonna’s anger boiled over and she lunged at Nicole. She gripped at the collar of the younger girl’s coat and tugged her sharply toward herself until they were face to face. She set a fiery scowl on her face and growled through her teeth “You belong in this family as much as anyone. You are my baby sister, god damn it.”

“No I’m not” Nicole felt a wave of emotion overcome her. She knew Wynonna loved her and she knew that if it came down to it she would have her back. She never thought she would be this upset, though. She swallowed a lump that was forming in her throat and tried to cough back the tears that were threatening to spill from her eyes “Wynonna, I’m not your sister.”

“Stop that!” Wynonna’s other hand came up and gripped at Nicole’s jacket. She gave a firm shake, as if trying to rid the girl of the very idea that they weren’t sisters. Before she realized it, tears were streaming down her face and she was practically screaming at Nicole “You are my sister! We are sisters! You and I will always be sisters!” She was barely able to choke out the last of her words before she was lost to the violent sobs that had taken her over.

Nicole was surprised when Wynonna collapsed into her. She wrapped her arms around her tightly and held her as she sobbed. She hadn’t expected her to take it this hard. It was breaking her heart. This was what she had feared most about taking the test. She had suspected that Wynonna would be upset and she never wanted to hurt her. She also didn’t want to lose her. It seemed that Wynonna felt the same and that offered at least a small bit of solace in this shitty situation.

They stood like that, together, Nicole holding Wynonna for an unknown amount of time. It wasn’t like it mattered anyway. What mattered was that these two people, who had grown up together and loved one another, were there for each other in a time of adversity. It was in that time together, where Wynonna sobbed and Nicole held her, that they silently cemented the fact that they would always be sisters in their hearts. Neither of them needed the same blood running through their veins for that to be true. Family is who you choose to have beside you in life and it was obvious that these two girls chose one another.

Nicole pulled back from the embrace when she felt Wynonna’s body stop trembling. She moved her hand to the girl’s chin and lifted until she found her blood shot eyes. She offered her a crooked smile and wiped her thumb across the tear stains on Wynonna’s cheek “Chin up, Earp. I’m not going anywhere.”

“You’re still an Earp to me” Wynonna frowned when Nicole tried to make light of the situation. She lifted her hand and laid it over her own heart, giving a serious nod, unblinking as she held eye contact “You have the heart of an Earp. You don’t need his blood running through you for that.”

“I have you” Nicole moved Wynonna’s hand from her heart and placed it over her own. She nodded as the very corner of her lips twitched into a smile “You are the reason there is any Earp in me. A DNA test isn’t going to take that away from me.”

“You’re damn right” Wynonna pushed her hand firmly against Nicole’s heart. She looked at where her hand laid under Nicole’s against her chest and a heavy sigh slipped from her lips. She was heartbroken. But she also knew that Nicole was right. As long as they had each other they would always be family. No matter what.

“You wanna get out of here?” Nicole moved her hand from Wynonna’s in favor of brushing some of her sister’s hair off her cheek. That’s right, they were still sisters in their hearts. 

“I don’t really wanna go home” Wynonna admitted with a shrug as she stepped away from Nicole and finally let her hand drop away from her heart.

“Let’s go get some pizza,” Nicole offered with a shrug. “I’ll even pay.”

“Hey, just because we don’t have the same dad doesn’t mean you can suddenly ask me on a date” Wynonna smirked at her attempt to lighten the mood. “We are still half-sisters which means that is still half-disgusting.”

Nicole rolled her eyes because Wynonna was still annoying. But a breath of a laugh ended up escaping her lips because it had been a funny joke. She shoved Wynonna away from her then turned to head for the truck “Who said you’re even my type?”

“That’s fucking rude! I am everyone’s type” Wynonna hurried to catch up with Nicole then gave her a shove once she caught her.

Nicole stumbled to the side with a chuckle. She was glad to see that they could still laugh together. She had been so afraid of losing her best friend. She wasn’t sure she could get through any of this without Wynonna.

They both climbed into the truck and Wynonna made quick work of getting back on the road heading into town. She was quiet for a little while before she let out a sigh and looked over to Nicole “Are you going to tell him you know?”

“I don’t see the point. It’ll just give him a reason to be an even bigger jackass to me” Nicole shrugged and looked down at where her hands still held onto the now crumpled results. She focused on it reading it over again, as she pressed it against her thigh and tried to smooth out the wrinkles in it.

“I don’t blame you” Wynonna mumbled then looked back to the road. Again a silence fell over the cab of the truck but it didn’t last more than a few seconds before Wynonna was speaking again “Are you going to ask Momma who your dad is?”

Nicole just shook her head. She drew in a deep breath and lifted her eyes from the paper to glance at Wynonna. Her brows curled together in a frown and she stared at her as if she wasn’t really sure what to say next.

Wynonna perked an eyebrow when she got no verbal response. She glanced over and when she saw the look on Nicole’s face she felt her heart sink again. Her eyes went wide and she quickly looked back and forth between Nicole and the road as panic started to build inside her “What is going on, Nicole? You have your bad news face on again.”

“I-” Nicole started but quickly shook her head. She couldn’t do it. She did not have the strength to see Wynonna’s world shattered all over again. It had been hard enough the first time.

“What is it?” Wynonna slammed on the brakes which caused the truck to skid a few feet until it came to a stop. It lurched back and forth a couple times until finally coming to rest. “Nicole, what is going on?” She reached across the cab and gripped onto the sleeve of the other girl’s jacket. “Just fucking tell me.”

Nicole was in tears all of the sudden. The look of dread that had filled Wynonna’s face was too much. She didn’t want to tell her what she had just read on the result sheet. Her head shook a few times as she painfully swallowed the lump that had risen in her throat. “Wynonna, I-” She closed her eyes, the tears spilling rapidly now, trying with all her might to push the words through her lips.

“Nicole” Wynonna’s tone weakened and she felt a tear escape her eye. She was surprised because she didn’t think she had any left. But the way her sister was breaking down right then and there somehow caused a whole new set of tears to spawn within her. She put the truck in park then gave a weak jerk of her hands to try and get Nicole to look at her “Please.”

“She’s not my mom” The words were garbled out, as if spoken through a mouthful of marbles, before Nicole collapsed into Wynonna’s shoulder as her body was taken over by sobs. She couldn’t be strong again. Not this time. Not as she told Wynonna that they weren’t even half family.

Wynonna felt her heart stop. Her body went numb. Somehow her arms moved around Nicole to hold her but she didn’t consciously do it. She was blank. She was not within herself, or the world. She felt like, for just a few seconds, she was actually dead from shock.

Then she came to herself and she felt everything all at once. _Everything_. Anger, betrayal, confusion. Her eyes blinked once and they were dry. Her brows curled into a frown and she pulled back from Nicole just enough to hold her at arm’s length. She looked the sobbing girl over slowly, as if she would be able to see an explanation painted all over her. When that didn’t come she just gave a single shake of her head and coughed out “What?”

Nicole’s head just shook as her body jerked each time a new wave of tears took over. All she could manage to do in that moment was to lift the results she had clenched in her hand and pressed it tightly against where Wynonna’s heart sat in her chest. 

Wynonna felt the pressure from Nicole’s hand on her chest and she quickly looked down. She blinked rapidly, trying to focus on the paper, as her hand lifted to free it from Nicole’s grip. She gave a few tugs until finally the younger girl’s fingers released the white knuckle hold she had on the paper. Wynonna shifted, sliding her right arm around Nicole’s sobbing body while she shook the test results out with her other hand.

She looked at the paper for a few moments before it became clear to her that she did not know what she was looking at. She could plainly see the words ‘Not A Match’ but that didn’t really clarify anything. So after a few more moments of holding her sister she let out a heavy sigh and rubbed along Nicole’s back gently “Just take a deep breath, okay? It’s alright. I got you, Patch. I got you, always.”

Nicole pulled back from Wynonna slightly. Her red eyes blinked up at the girl a few times before she gave a nod of acknowledgment to the words. Her hand lifted and she wiped some snot away, dropping her hand to wipe it on her jeans, before she sniffled sharply. She licked her lips and after a moment dared to attempt to speak “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you I tested Momma, too. I just wanted to be sure. I never thought…” Her voice weakened as the surprise of what she had learned came back to her. 

“You tested Momma, too?” Wynonna’s eyebrows lifted into her hairline to show just how surprised she was by that. She stared in disbelief for a few seconds before she coughed out a confused grunt and shrugged “Why?”

“I don’t know” Nicole drew in a long breath as her eyes lifted to focus on Wynonna. She was relieved that she didn’t seem completely upset by the news that she hadn’t told her intentions to test both of their parents. “I guess I figured it couldn’t hurt. I never thought this would happen…” She sighed out heavily and motioned to the results that Wynonna still held. 

“So we’re not related at all?” It was as if Wynonna was finally starting to put all the pieces together. Her eyes fluttered as they shifted to look at the results again. She gave a slight twitch of her head back and forth “That has to be wrong.”

“It’s not” Nicole chewed her bottom lip nervously now. She wondered if this is where Wynonna was going to start getting upset. “DNA tests are as close to 100% accurate as science can get.”

“No, I mean…” Wynonna gestured with the test in her hand toward nothing in particular before she turned her eyes to focus on Nicole. “There are pictures of her holding me with a very large pregnant belly which means she most definitely got knocked up after me.”

Nicole blinked just once. She hadn’t thought of that. She had seen the pictures more times than she could say in her life and thought nothing of it. But Wynonna was right. If she was not genetically Michelle and Ward’s then who was the baby the older woman was carrying in those pictures?

The two of them sat in silence together for a few moments just thinking it over. It was starting to really sink in just how much their lives had just changed because of one simple DNA test. Not only were they now not even related by blood but apparently their mother had a mysterious pregnancy that suddenly disappeared when she brought Nicole home from the hospital.

“Where did that baby go?” Nicole asked to break the silence that had settled in the truck.

Wynonna just shook her head a few times in defeat. She couldn’t even begin to guess what had happened. She barely trusted her parents and now she had another reason to doubt anything they tell her. With that in mind she let out a sigh and decided to get back on the way home, the plan for pizza totally forgotten. She clicked the truck into drive and slowly steered it so it was back on the road correctly.

“Do you think she lost it and decided to adopt me so no one knew?” Nicole offered a suggestion when Wynonna didn’t say anything.

Wynonna shrugged. She glanced at Nicole then looked back at the road. Her mind was reeling. She felt like she might be slipping into a state of shock as everything that had been revealed to her started to really settle in. 

“Or maybe the test was wrong? Maybe the DNA was tainted somehow and I really am an Earp?” Nicole once more tried to suggest an answer to the riddle they were now faced with. “Should I get retested?”

“Maybe she faked it and she’s a fucking liar” Wynonna growled out in frustration. She wasn’t frustrated at Nicole, per se. She was frustrated with the situation and finding out her whole life was a lie. She just happened to be taking her feelings out on whoever was closest which, unfortunately, was Nicole.

“Well obviously she’s a liar” Nicole mumbled. She then reached out and gently laid her hand on Wynonna’s shoulder. She slid a little closer to her on the bench seat of the truck and let out a heavy sigh “I know this is a lot to process and I am sure you’re pretty pissed at it all but please don’t take it out on me.”

“Just-” Wynonna stopped herself from snapping at Nicole. It wasn’t her fault. She gave a shake of her head and sighed out in defeat “I’m sorry but I’m really fucking…” She just trailed off as her grip on the steering wheel tightened. She huffed out through her nose and clenched her jaw to keep from lashing out.

“I know” Nicole rubbed her sister’s arm lightly before pulling her hand away slowly. She turned her eyes to look out the front window to see they had made it to the Homestead. She drew in a deep breath and her eyes focused back on Wynonna beside her. She knew the girl probably wanted to be alone to process. She understood how heavy all of this was. So when Wynonna pulled to a stop, Nicole offered a crooked half smile and motioned to the house “I’ll leave you alone. I will go do some homework or something. But, Wynonna…” Her tone was a little desperate now as her eyes returned to the girl next to her in the truck “...please don’t shut me out completely, alright?”

Wynonna closed her eyes and felt emotions tremble through her entire being at the soft pleas from Nicole. She knew all too well that what she wanted to do was push everyone away and go on a rebellious streak but her little sister was right. It wouldn’t do any good. Besides, she needed to get her shit together so she could be there for Nicole because, no matter how pissed she was about it all, this was more about Nicole than herself. She couldn’t even imagine how betrayed she must be feeling.

“I won’t” She finally managed to push from her lips. The words sounded as if they had bounced off a few bubbles on their way out. Her eyes opened and she looked over to Nicole with a heavy sadness behind her lids “I just need a little time.”

“I know” Nicole assured her with a very soft smile. She gave one nod then motioned again to the Homestead “I’ll be waiting. I am sure once you process it you’ll come back with a plan to kick ass and take names.”

Wynonna snorted out a soft laugh and set her eyes adoringly on Nicole. It didn’t matter that they didn’t share blood, Nicole was her family and would be until the day she died. She put on a very small smile and gave a little nod “I love you, Patch.”

“I love you, too” Nicole returned the soft smile before pushing the door of the truck open and slipping out. She stepped back so that Wynonna had room to guide the truck away and back onto the road. As she watched her sister’s truck fade off down the road she let out a heavy sigh. She hoped her sister would be alright.

Then she turned and looked at the Homestead. Suddenly, she felt like she didn’t belong. The evening was fading into night and an eerie silence was settling around her. She gave a shake of her head, knowing the last place she wanted to be was in a house full of lies. So she pulled out her phone and sent a text to the only person she felt might be able to understand what she was feeling.

“Hey Waves. Can you come pick me up? I really need to talk.”

~.~.~.~.~.~.


	7. "Just starting something new again"

“Woah” Waverly looked completely stunned. She just stared at Nicole sitting beside her on the hood of her car. After a few long seconds she shook her head and turned her eyes to the ground “That’s intense.”

“Yeah” Nicole let out a heavy sigh and bobbed her head up and down in a few nods. She had her eyes fixated on the ground, staring blankly at nothing in particular. It seemed like she was just now starting to realize the reality of her life. She wasn’t sure what she should be feeling. All she knew was that she felt a little confused but not much more than that. She should be feeling more, right? She was trying but all she could pin down was how many new questions she had.

Waverly shook her head. She wasn’t really sure what else to say. She could only imagine what Nicole was going through. She had learned at a young age the fate of her own parents and she remembered it had been hard but this was different. Nicole had been lied to for her entire life. How do you bounce back from something like this? She had no idea.

When she dared to look up again she could see just how upset Nicole was. She didn’t have any trace of her usual optimism anywhere on her face. It was breaking her heart to see a girl with such an intoxicating personality so downtrodden. She let out a sigh and reached out to lightly place her hand on Nicole’s knee “If there is anything I can do to help you just let me know. I am sorry, I’m not really sure what else to say. I wish I had some words of wisdom to offer you.”

“I just appreciate you being here with me” Nicole looked up and attempted a smile. Her lips twisted sideways and that was as close as she could get. “I guess I just wanted to get away from what was happening but I didn’t want to be alone. Does that make sense?”

“I think so” Waverly nodded with a slight smile. “Sometimes it’s best to remove yourself from your own bubble so you can really work it out but it’s nice to have an unbiased person to bounce thoughts off, too.”

“Yeah” Nicole’s lips managed, for a split second, to curl into a tiny smile. Her eyes stayed on Waverly a little longer than they had previously in the night and she finally felt something other than confusion. She felt her heart flutter and her stomach warm. She couldn’t express how much it meant to her that Waverly had agreed to come pick her up. “Thanks for being my shoulder to cry on.”

“Well, to be fair, you haven’t shed a single tear” Waverly let out a soft laugh before her hand gently patted Nicole’s leg “But, really, it’s my pleasure.”

“Do you ever think about finding out more about your parents?” Nicole lifted an eyebrow as she suddenly shifted subjects slightly. “I mean, I know we’ve talked about it for the project but how much information do you think your aunt will give you? She’s been selective about what she’s told you up until now, right?” She shrugged and flicked her hand out to the side, palm up, as if showing Waverly the point she was trying to make “Do you think she’s hiding something?”

“I don’t-” Waverly cut herself off and blinked just once. Her head tilted to the side and it was obvious she was mulling it over in her head. After a few seconds she shook her head and brought her focus back to Nicole “I don’t think she’s hiding anything. I mean, I guess I haven’t really pushed her for information because I’ve never thought too much about it.”

“Why not?” Nicole sounded a little desperate now. “If I’ve learned anything from today it’s that you can’t even trust your own family. If I were you I’d be asking everything I could.”

“Calm down” Waverly lifted her hand from Nicole’s leg and held it up in a gesture to get the girl to just slow down. She could see that she was deflecting her own feelings. Her head shook at the girl calmly “I know you’re upset, Nicole. But lashing out at someone who has nothing to do with this isn’t going to make you feel better.”

“I’m not lashing out” Nicole slid off the hood of the car and let out a heavy sigh. She started to pace a bit near the passenger side headlight as her eyes focused on Waverly again “I’m sorry I just…” She shrugged and motioned to the other girl “Why are you not freaking out?”

“This isn’t about me, Nicole” Waverly put her hands to her own chest and shook her head again. “I know your entire world just got flipped on its head and you are trying to shift focus from that. But this has nothing to do with me and my parents.” She stood and took a step toward Nicole before timidly trying to set her hand on the girl’s arm. She was glad when Nicole didn’t pull away and she let out a sigh of relief at that. “I will help you find your real parents, okay? You don’t have to go through this alone.”

“I can’t do this alone, Waverly” Nicole’s mood shifted again. Her hand lifted to take hold of the one of Waverly’s that had been on her arm. She stared with a look of despair forming behind her eyes “I’m so afraid to lose Wynonna to this. I need to know that there is going to be someone by my side.”

Waverly could feel her heart breaking in her chest as she looked into the face of someone who was genuinely terrified by what her future held. She bit her lip and gave her head a quick shake before speaking softly but firmly “As long as you want me, I’m here. You can count on me.”

Nicole nodded quickly and finally dropped her eyes away from Waverly. She swallowed the lump that had risen in her throat and drew in a deep breath. With each new passing second the reality of what her life had become was settling in more and more. She wasn’t really sure she knew how to handle it but she believed Waverly when she said she would be there by her side. She also knew, deep in her heart, that Wynonna was there for her too. But her sister had her own emotions to deal with first before she would be of any real use and Nicole wasn’t sure how long that would take.

“Are you alright” Waverly asked nervously once Nicole stood staring at the ground for quite a few moments. 

“As alright as I can be” Nicole nodded as her eyes lifted to meet Waverly’s concerned gaze. Again she managed a tiny smile as a heavy breath escaped her lips “Yeah I think I’m okay right now. I can’t really do anything about it tonight anyway, right?”

“Right” Waverly gave one happy nod of agreement. She kept her eyes carefully on Nicole, taking in every flinch of her lips or flicker of her eyes. It was as if she were trying to decipher whether or not Nicole was being sincere. 

Nicole felt her cheeks start to warm slightly at the way Waverly was looking at her. She drew in a deep breath and after fluttering her eyes slightly she let out a laugh and looked back to her feet “I guess you can take me home now. I should probably check to see if Wynonna is back anyway.”

“Take all the time you need” Waverly shook her head and still spoke softly. “Wynonna is a big girl and can figure her stuff out on her own. You should absolutely be selfish about this.”

“But, this affects her, too” Nicole looked back at Waverly with a bit of a frown.

“When all is said and done it’s your life that has changed the most. She still has her parents. She still has her siblings, you know?” Waverly shrugged and reached out to once more lay a comforting hand on the girl’s arm. It seemed that had already become a habit for her. “If she gets upset that you aren’t completely focused on her feelings then her priorities aren’t in the right place.”

Nicole let out a heavy sigh. She knew that Waverly was right but she was still totally scared that Wynonna would toss her aside now that she wasn’t really family. Wynonna was her best friend. She was the only real, legitimate thing she had that felt like any semblance of family. She needed that comfort now more than ever. 

Realizing she had been quiet for a little too long she smiled crookedly and lifted her shoulders up to her ears in a high shrug “I could use some food, actually. It’s been a long day and I haven’t eaten anything.”

“Perfect” Waverly nodded in agreement and motioned for her to go ahead and get into the car as she moved to the driver’s side. Once she climbed in and started the engine she looked over at Nicole and gave her a bright grin “I know a place that will put a smile on your face.”

A soft laugh escaped Nicole’s lip as she buckled up. She trusted Waverly to take her somewhere good. Honestly, she was so hungry she knew she could eat anywhere they ended up. So she just gave a nod and motioned toward the steering wheel “I’m at your mercy.”

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

“You know…” Nicole let out a very soft, happy laugh as she motioned with the sandwich she held toward the view of the lake they sat near. “When you said you were going to take me somewhere that would make me smile I thought you meant somewhere with a play place or something. But this is…” She trailed off and let her eyes fall over the still surface of the water “...better.”

“Well good” Waverly nodded happily, a small smile spreading over her lips as she focused on the girl beside her. She had wanted to do something to help her feel the tiniest bit better. She was glad she had accomplished that. “Although now I think I should have taken you to McDonalds.”

“Noooo” Nicole shook her head quickly and looked at Waverly as if she had just offended her. “No this is perfect. Better than perfect! It’s like you knew, somehow, that this sort of thing could calm me down.”

Waverly bit her lower lip softly and dropped her eyes away from the girl. She picked nervously at the bread of the sandwich they had stopped to pick up on their way to the lake. She gave a single nod and drew in a breath to calm herself as the words she had read earlier in the day swirled around her head. Her body warmed at the thought. She still felt like she had intruded on something personal and she felt bad about it.

Nicole arched an eyebrow slightly when Waverly got quiet. She reached over to lightly place her hand against the girl’s knee and dipped her head to try and catch her eyes “Did I say something wrong?”

“No” Waverly insisted as she quickly looked up to find Nicole’s concerned eyes on her. She shook her head softly and let out a sigh “I just feel a little guilty because…” She bit her lip, curling her brows together in a frown. When she saw the way Nicole seemed to be listening intently she felt her heart flutter a bit. This girl was unlike anyone she had ever met before and she wasn’t sure how to handle how it made her feel.

“What is it?” Nicole whispered gently. She did not want to push the girl into talking about something she wasn’t ready for but she also wanted to make sure Waverly knew that she was listening.

Seeing Nicole’s completely understanding and patient eyes on her made Waverly let out a defeated sounding sigh. How could she keep this from her? She gave her head a shake and shrugged just slightly “Earlier today, while I was waiting for you at the hospital, I thought it would be good for me to work on our project, you know? Make good use of my time.”

A slow smile crept over Nicole’s lips and she gave a nod to acknowledge the words from Waverly “You are such an overachiever.” 

A laugh left Waverly’s lips at the teasing and she rolled her eyes “That’s not the point.” She held her eyes on Nicole for a few moments and once more felt her heart flutter. Nicole was so gentle and caring and, if she was being honest, Waverly was growing quite fond of the dimples that were currently and prominently visible. She blinked and looked away because she didn’t want to look at the girl when she gave her confession “Anyway, I went to get my notebook from my backpack and realized I accidentally grabbed yours.”

“That’s understandable” Nicole shrugged and focused with a little confusion in her eyes. “We kind of rushed out of there in a hurry. I’m not upset about it if that is what you are worried about.”

“I was looking through your notes. I wanted to see what you had come up with and…” Waverly’s eyes lifted slowly. She wondered if Nicole had caught on to what she had read yet.

“Oh” Nicole had caught on. She knew she had not exactly hidden the things she had written about Waverly. They were right there for anyone to find. She felt her entire body go warm. Her cheeks blazed redder than her hair. She finally looked away, bringing her eyes to the glass-like surface of the lake. Maybe she should just walk out into the lake and let it drown her. That might be easier than having this conversation.

“Hey” Waverly scooted closer to Nicole and gently laid her hand on her knee. She focused intently on the girl, hoping to silently will her to look at her. When that didn’t happen, Waverly let out a soft sigh and spoke very gently “What I read was incredible, Nicole. No one has ever said such beautifully kind things about me. Honestly…” She let out a shy breath of a laugh and tucked some hair behind her ear bashfully “...I am pretty speechless about it.”

Nicole swallowed the lump that had suddenly risen in her throat. She glanced to her right where Waverly sat next to her and looked at her with a mix of curiosity and terror. This was her worst nightmare and yet it seemed like it wasn’t as bad as she had imagined it would be. “Really?” She croaked out before clearing her throat and trying again “You liked it?”

“How could I not?” Waverly laughed as if that was a ridiculous question. Her hand lifted from Nicole’s leg and moved to rest on her shoulder as she turned to face the girl more squarely “Do you really see me in that way? The way you wrote about in your notebook?”

Nicole gave a quick nod and licked over her lips. Her eyes dropped to where her hand trembled as it held onto the remaining bit of her sandwich. She had to focus on something else because looking at Waverly right now was too much. She had hoped the girl never found out how she felt but now that she had Nicole didn’t want to see her face. She didn’t want to see the disgust or disappointment or whatever negative reaction she would have when Nicole admitted everything was true. She picked at her bread mindlessly and cleared her throat “I never thought you’d see the things I wrote.”

“You don’t have to be nervous” Waverly whispered, scooting closer to Nicole slowly. She could see the way Nicole’s fingers picked at the crust of the sandwich as a way to distract herself. This made Waverly sigh out and gently lay her hand over where Nicole’s fidgeted “Hey, look at me.”

“I can’t” Nicole’s voice trembled and her head shook quickly. She drew in a deep breath and stared at the way Waverly’s hand was resting over hers. Her heart was racing so fast in her chest she thought she might have a heart attack. The longer she sat beside Waverly the more she felt panic fill her entire being. This was never supposed to happen.

“You can’t?” Waverly frowned and curled her fingers around Nicole’s hand. She gave a soft squeeze and shook her head. “It’s just me, Nicole. You don’t have to be afraid.”

“But I am” Nicole’s voice squeaked as she finally looked up at Waverly. There was a mix of terror and nervousness in her eyes. Her head shook and after drawing in a deep breath she spoke again, her voice trembling once more “I am scared about everything, Waverly. I am afraid to find out who my real parents are. I am scared to see how Wynonna will react to all of this. I am…” She paused and swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. She shook her head and looked away as the last of her words came out more softly “...I am terrified of you.”

“I scare you?” Waverly sounded completely surprised by that. She shook her head slightly as a soft smile twitched at the corners of her lips.

“Yeah, you do” Nicole let out a heavy sigh and lifted her eyes again. When she was greeted by a smile, she felt her heart flutter. She had expected Waverly to run. She hadn’t thought the girl would stay, let alone be smiling at her. It put her at ease and she felt her own lips twitch up into a grin “What are you smiling at?”

Waverly’s head moved back and forth in a little shake as her smile grew. Her hand lifted from where she had been holding Nicole’s and gently moved it to the girl’s cheek. She brushed some of the red bangs hanging in Nicole’s face out of the way and settled her eyes in a gentle gaze on the girl “You’re adorable when you’re nervous.”

“You think I’m adorable?” Nicole’s cheeks flushed red again and she let out a soft laugh. She had to draw in a deep breath to steady the trembling she felt moving through her entire body. This couldn’t be real, could it?

“I think you are a lot of different things, Nicole, and adorable is one of them” Waverly’s smile grew and she licked over her lips slowly. Her eyes dropped to glance at Nicole’s mouth for just a moment before returning to the other girl’s gaze. 

Nicole’s eyes fluttered along with her heart at the words she had just heard. This was like a dream come true. She had no idea the things she had written about Waverly would have ever been received this way. It was almost too much to believe and, honestly, she had no idea what to do next. She just smiled at Waverly with that crooked, dopey smile she got whenever she thought of the girl. The girl who was sitting there beside her, looking into her eyes, and telling her she was adorable.

Waverly bit her lip with uncertainty when she got no response from Nicole. It seemed the girl had frozen in place and now Waverly wasn’t sure what to do next. She lifted an eyebrow as her hand slid slowly down Nicole’s cheek, her eyes moving about her face as if trying to read her emotions in her features. After a moment she let out a nervous laugh and gave a single nod “Very adorable.”

The way that Waverly looked at her, so tenderly and attentively, was all too much for Nicole. The longer she stared at the girl she had liked for years the longer she felt herself teetering on the edge of doing something she thought was completely stupid. Her eyes took in the way Waverly’s smile lingered on her lips and she couldn’t be sure but it seemed like she might have been waiting for a kiss. That was crazy, though, right? There was no way Waverly wanted to kiss her. Nicole was sure she had imagined it but hearing the compliment from the girl made it suddenly impossible to stop herself from leaning in and pressing her lips to Waverly’s tenderly.

Waverly’s eyes fluttered closed when she saw Nicole leaning in for the kiss. She did not move away. She tilted her chin up and gladly accepted the gesture. She had been thinking about it since the moment she had read the words beautifully scrawled across the page of Nicole’s notebook, if not earlier. She had been nervous about it but she had also been sure. She almost thought she had misread the signals and given up on the thought when Nicole finally leaned in. She let out a happy sigh against the kiss and lifted her hand to the back of her head to hold the girl there while she pressed her lips to Nicole’s in return.

The two of them stayed locked in the chaste, tender kiss for a handful of seconds more before Nicole pulled back. She let out a nervous breath of a laugh and passed her tongue over her lips. She smiled at the taste of Waverly’s lipgloss. It was fruity but she couldn’t pin down the exact flavor. Didn’t matter, though. It was now her new favorite taste. She then looked at Waverly, biting her lip nervously, as a shy smile crept up at the corners of her lips just enough to bring her dimples out.

Waverly let out a shy giggle herself as the kiss broke. She pulled back just slightly and tucked some of her long hair behind her ear. Her eyes once more focused on the girl next to her and she scanned her face again in an attempt to interpret what was on Nicole’s mind. When all she was greeted with were blushing cheeks and a shy smile, Waverly let out a very light laugh “That was nice.”

“Yeah?” Nicole raised an eyebrow slightly as her smile grew. “That was okay?”

“More than okay” Waverly gave a quick nod to try and quell Nicole’s uncertainty. “I have been thinking about that all day.”

“Really?” Nicole laughed the word out and gave her head a shake. She could not believe her ears at the moment. 

“Why is that so hard to believe?” Waverly was still smiling but her brows curled together in concern as she focused on Nicole.

“It’s just…” Nicole shrugged shyly and tucked her short hair behind her ear. Her eyes moved over Waverly’s face to take in her smile for just a moment before she let out a sigh and spoke softly “I’ve kind of had a thing for you for a while.”

“You hide it well” Waverly admitted with a soft laugh as her hand moved to slide down Nicole’s arm until she could take hold of her hand. “I had no idea until today.”

“That’s the point of a secret crush” Nicole said teasingly with a little roll of her eyes.

“Well you are very good at it” Waverly smirked and gave the girl a little nudge with her shoulder.

Nicole let out another soft laugh and felt a blush creep over her cheeks again. Her head was still reeling. She was pretty sure this was all a dream and she was about to wake up. She drew in a breath to try and focus herself again before her voice dropped into a whisper “So it’s okay that I, um, like you like that? Because it’s totally okay if you don’t feel the same.”

“Are you kidding me?” Waverly shook her head and was unable to stop grinning at the girl. She lifted both of her hands to cup at Nicole’s cheek in order to hold her face there so she could not look away. She spoke firmly, nodding at her own words now “I am flattered that someone as incredible as you has even noticed me.”

Nicole nodded into Waverly’s hands. Her heart somehow picked up the pace of it’s thundering. She felt a little light headed. She was completely shocked that this was actually really happening. She drew in another deep breath to steady herself before a soft laugh escaped her lips and she smiled widely “Trust me, I have more than noticed you.”

“Obviously” Waverly let out a soft laugh as her hands dropped from Nicole’s face now that she had gotten her point across. “The things you wrote…” She bit her bottom lip softly as she thought about what she had read “...I’m not sure anyone could read those things and not be completely flattered.”

Nicole lifted one shoulder in a shy shrug and bit her bottom lip again. She fought the urge to look away and kept her eyes focused on the most beautiful girl she had ever seen in her life. “Is that the only reason you wanted to kiss me?”

“What do you mean?” Waverly’s smile faltered slightly.

“I just mean…” Nicole sighed as she gave another uncertain shrug “I don’t want you to feel like you suddenly had to kiss me because of the nice things I wrote about you. If you don’t feel the same way I totally get it.”

“Nicole” Waverly reached out and put her hand on the girl’s cheek again. She used it to steady her face once more so she could look her straight in the eyes. Her lips held a soft smile but her tone was firm when she spoke “I had already been having confusing feelings about you and the things I found in your notebook just sealed the deal, alright?”

“Okay” Nicole licked her lips and a short sigh of relief left her mouth as she nodded quickly to show she had understood. Then she curled her brows curiously as the words really set in and she couldn’t help asking “So you’re saying you were starting to like me?”

Waverly couldn’t help her own laughter at the question. She nodded a few times slightly as her hand dropped once more from Nicole’s face “Yes, Nicole, I totally already liked you.”

Nicole drew in a sharp breath and smiled so widely she lit up like a Christmas tree. This had to be a dream. There was no way this was real. She had lost several hours daydreaming about something like this and for it to now be a reality was blowing her mind. Her eyes fluttered in excitement before she gave a nod “Can I kiss you again, then?”

Waverly couldn’t help the giggle that came from her lips at that moment. Nicole was absolutely adorable and she was finding her more and more irresistible by the moment. She gave a few quick nods before starting to lean toward Nicole again “That sounds like a great idea.”

Being prepared for the second kiss, Nicole took her time to fully enjoy it. Her mind was still racing and she was still in a state of euphoric shock but she wasn’t distracted by it while her lips danced with Waverly’s. The two of them sat side by side on the hood of Waverly’s car alternating between kissing, eating, and talking for the rest of the night. This day had been one Hell of a rollercoaster ride and yet Nicole felt like she might come out unscathed. It was either that or everything fell completely to pieces. Ever the optimist, Nicole was banking on the former. Maybe that was a little naive of her but at the moment, with her lips pressed to Waverly’s, she didn’t care.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Nicole was awoken by the sound of glass shattering. She shot up in bed and whipped her head in the direction of the noise. She furrowed her brows together in concentration and blinked once as her eyes adjusted to the soft light of the room. It was definitely the middle of the night. Maybe she had been dreaming.

That thought shattered when she heard another crash outside. This time there was no mistaking that she had actually heard something. She quickly tossed her blankets off herself and scrambled out of bed to the window. She pushed aside her curtain and looked down just in time to see Wynonna swinging a crowbar down against the windshield of their father’s police cruiser once more. Not her father.

Nicole shook that away and quickly rushed out of her bedroom. She ran down the stairs and over to the hooks where her coat was hanging. She slipped it on as she hurried out the front door of the Homestead. She lifted her hand up toward Wynonna and called out loudly “Wynonna, what are you doing?”

“What does it look-” Wynonna grunted and swung the crowbar again. She left a deep dent in the hood of the cruiser before looking back at Nicole “-like I’m doing?”

“Are you insane?” Nicole ran over to the cruiser. She had barefeet and the snow stung immediately but that didn’t stop her. She managed to put herself in Wynonna’s line of sight and hold up her hands in an attempt to stop her. “Wynonna, get down! He is going to go nuts on you! You could go to jail!”

“Fuck him” Wynonna yelled and pointed with the crowbar toward the Homestead. “Lying sack of shit! Her, too!” She was now screaming at the house they had grown up in as if it were her parents. “You are both shit stains on this planet!”

“Okay, okay, I get it” Nicole still had her hands held up toward her sister. Not her sister. She quickly shook that away and refocused on Wynonna. “You’re pissed and I get it. It sucks. But this…” She motioned to the destroyed car and shook her head “Wynonna, this is not the answer. So why don’t you get down from there and come inside with me?”

“No! I want to-” Wynonna lifted the crowbar again and once more grunted loudly as she brought it down with all her might. The light on top of the cruiser shattered and she let out a heavy breath “-make him pay!”

“Wynonna, please” Nicole felt herself starting to tear up now. She could feel the sheer hurt radiating from her sister and it was starting to seep into her. She kept one hand up in a motion to stop her as her other hand came to rest on her heart. “Just get down, please. I know you’re upset. I know you’re angry. This sucks. It’s terrible and you are absolutely right in saying our parents are shit bags. But, please…” She sighed and shook her head slightly, fixing her sister with a desperate gaze now “...don’t let him win like this.”

Wynonna blinked the tears from her eyes and focused on Nicole below her. She could feel her anger starting to ebb and her breathing slow as she stared into the younger girl’s pleading eyes. She gave a single nod and dropped the crowbar to the frozen ground. She then bent her knees and dropped down off the hood of the cruiser gently. She moved over to Nicole and gave her head a little shake “I hate him for what he’s done to you. I am so pissed at the both of them for lying to us this entire time.”

“I know” Nicole nodded quickly and reached out to put her hands on Wynonna’s shoulders. She looked her right in the eyes and that is when she saw the glossiness from the tears. She also got a whiff of whiskey on her breath and frowned. She wouldn’t lecture her, though. It didn’t matter at the moment. “But we can’t let this tear apart our entire world, okay?”

“You want me to just accept this and not make him pay?” Wynonna threw her hand toward the house to indicate where her father was asleep. “He treated you like shit for no reason! How are you so calm about this?”

“I’m not” Nicole’s brows curled into a frown and she shook her head slightly. “Wynonna, I’m upset. My entire life has been a lie and now I don’t even know if I have a family. I-”

“You do” Wynonna yelled and pushed her hand against Nicole’s chest. She stumbled backwards from her own shove and stared at the younger girl as if she had just been insulted. “I am still your family! You promised me we would still be sisters no matter what!”

“I know, I know” Nicole held her hands up to try and quiet Wynonna’s shouts and took a slow step toward her. “That isn’t what I meant. I just meant that I don’t know who my parents are and it’s really confusing, okay? I get why you are upset, trust me. But this…” She motioned to the cruiser again and shook her head “....anger is not going to accomplish anything.”

“What do you want from me?” Wynonna threw her hands up in frustration as a few tears slid down her cheeks. “I’ve never been so pissed in my life, Nicole. I can’t just sit here and do nothing!”

“Help me” Nicole put a hand to her chest and nodded. “Team up with me to find answers. We figure out who my parents are. We find out why they lied to us. Then…” She let out a soft sigh and nodded again “...we can move on from them together, yeah? Leave them behind without an explanation. Start a new life, a better life, as our own little family.” She smiled just slightly as a single tear ran down her cheek. “You and I can make our own family filled with people who we can actually trust. Make the type of family we’ve never had.”

Wynonna nodded quickly and lifted her hand to wipe at her nose. She let out a shaky sigh, watching the cloud of breath rise into the cold night air, before she stepped back toward Nicole. “You promise? Cause I don’t think I can survive without you, Patch.”

“I promise” Nicole suddenly choked up and tried to swallow the feeling as she reached out to put a hand on Wynonna’s shoulder. “You will always have me in your life.”

“You’re my favorite person in the whole world” The words bubbled out of Wynonna’s throat as more tears started to run. She tried to clear her throat as she stepped into Nicole and wrapped her arms around her tightly. She pulled her into a desperately tight hug, squeezing like her life depended on it, as she gave into her hurt and let herself finally cry.

“And you’re mine” Nicole whispered against her sister’s ear. The emotions coming from Wynonna and the way the girl was clinging to her was overwhelming. Soon she found herself crying, too. This wasn’t easy and this was only going to get harder but with the two of them fighting alongside one another no matter what they knew it was all going to be alright. 

After a few long minutes of standing together, crying, Nicole finally pulled back. She did so slowly, to ensure Wynonna knew she wasn’t pushing her away. She brought her hands up to Wynonna’s shoulders and gave her a sad smile “Let’s go inside, alright? Because I didn’t put on shoes and my feet are ice blocks now.”

Wynonna coughed out a laugh through her sniffles. She wiped at her nose and glanced down at Nicole’s feet “That was fucking stupid.”

“Well that-” Nicole motioned to the destroyed police cruiser “-was even stupider.”

Wynonna glanced at the car she had destroyed and just shrugged. She knew she would face Hell from her father but she didn’t care. The worst thing he could do was arrest her. Being in jail would not be that terrible at this point. In fact, it might be like a mini vacation. Then, suddenly, a thought hit her. She turned to Nicole, slapping her gently with the back of her hand to get her attention “Hey, Red, I think I just got an idea.”

Nicole lifted an eyebrow as she glanced at Wynonna beside her. She stepped up onto the first step of the porch and turned to better face the girl since she had stopped in her tracks. She eyed her up and down expectantly then gave a little shrug “I’m listening.”

“You think the sheriff has access to things like hospital records and birth certificates?” Wynonna tilted her head to the side as she pondered her own words.

“I don’t know” Nicole shook her head a few times. “He might.”

“Think about it” Wynonna spoke excitedly now and stepped up onto the same step as Nicole, bringing herself face to face with the younger girl. She smiled slightly and gave a few rapid nods “If he has to look up someone for like, I don’t know, a criminal check or something he probably has access to that stuff. If not directly then he at least knows how to find those records, right?”

“Makes sense” Nicole agreed and stepped up the last step onto the porch. Her feet were numb now and she felt like she might stumble so she grabbed onto the post holding up the roof of the porch. “Why?”

“Maybe I can get into his computer, you know?” Wynonna stepped up onto the porch too. She leaned on the post opposite of where Nicole was standing and gave another nod. “Maybe I can look up birth records in the area and see if we can figure out who your parents are?”

Nicole blinked just once. She hadn’t even thought of that. Then again she had only known about being adopted for less than twenty-four hours so she hadn’t really had time to figure out a plan of attack. This was a good idea, though. “I don’t want you to get in trouble” She mumbled before a smile came over her lips “But I like this line of thinking, Wynonna. It’s smart.”

“It’s fucking brilliant” Wynonna laughed out and clapped her hands excitedly. “I definitely got the brains in the family!” She paused, pointed at Nicole, looked her up and down, and gave a slight shrug “And the looks because, well, we don’t have to share the genes now.”

“Too soon” Nicole mumbled but let out a laugh. She moved for the door and pulled it open. She motioned for Wynonna to get inside before she followed her in “We will have to figure out how to find birth records legally.”

“I’ll just hack his shit” Wynonna shrugged and kicked off her boots once she was inside. She then pulled her coat off and tossed it on the couch before turning to look at Nicole. There was a fondness in her eyes and it lingered for a moment before she shook it off “For now let’s just call it a night. I am going to need my beauty sleep if I am going to face Sheriff Douchebag tomorrow morning.”

Nicole shook her head as she hung her coat in place then followed Wynonna toward the stairs. She was sure there would be an explosion in the morning once Ward woke up to find his car had been trashed. It was kind of a miracle he hadn’t been woken up by the noise. Then again, consuming a lot of alcohol made it much easier to sleep through things going on around you.

The sisters parted ways at the top of the stairs and both headed to their rooms. As Nicole pushed her door closed she let her back come to rest against it. She closed her eyes and drew in a deep breath. She held it for a moment then slowly released it in a long, steady breath. This had been the most challenging day of her life and she was exhausted. She couldn’t wait to get back to sleep and start her new life tomorrow. She liked the sound of that. A new life. She was ready to get this new chapter started.

~.~.~.~.~.~.


	8. “The truth is rarely pure and never simple”

Nicole's eyes shot open at the sound of shattering glass. She sat up in bed and turned her head in the direction of the sound. She blinked once to clear the sleep from her eyes and that is when she heard Ward Earp yelling at the top of his lungs.

"GET YOUR GOOD FOR NOTHING ASS DOWN HERE SO I CAN KICK IT!"

Nicole leapt out of bed, stumbling to her knees because of the fact that the sheets were tangled around her feet. She grunted, turned to her back, and kicked her legs wildly to free herself. Once she was released from the twisted fabric she scrambled to her feet and sprinted from her room.

She jumped down five steps at a time until landing on the ground floor of the Homestead with a heavy slap of feet against wood. She grabbed the wall and swung herself around the corner into the living room just in time to see Ward storming red faced toward the stairs.

"Move out of my way before you get a beating, too."

"I won't let you hurt her!" Nicole shouted and put herself between the man and the stairwell. She put her hands up like a wall and stood with her chest puffed out.

Ward blinked in confusion because Nicole had never stood up to him. He stared at her curiously for a moment before a wicked smirk moved over his lips "You suddenly think you can stop me?"

"Yes" Nicole tried to sound firm but her voice trembled slightly because she was scared of the man. He had a violent temper that he easily lost control over when he was mad. 

Ward seemed impressed for a moment as his eyes traveled over Nicole's defiant stance. That is when he noticed the black eye. He perked an eyebrow at the discovery and snorted in amusement "Looks like you already picked a fight you couldn't win."

"You should see the other guy" Wynonna's voice came out of nowhere.

Nicole whipped around to see her sister standing on the bottom step with her arms folded and a smirk on her face. Her face held a challenging glare that was fixed on her father.

"You!" Ward's focus shifted to Wynonna now that he realized she was up. "I'm gonna skin you alive for what you did to my cruiser you ungrateful-"

Nicole's hands shoved against Ward's chest as he tried to push past her to get to Wynonna. She quickly stepped into his path and set him with a fierce glare "Leave her alone."

Confusion once more came to Ward's face when Nicole stopped him. He eyed her over again then huffed in disapproval as his eyes settled angrily on her "You need to mind your own business."

"This is my business" Nicole once more stepped into Ward's path. She set her eyes on the man and even though she was trembling on the inside she was trying to look tough on the outside. She put her hands on her hips and shook her head just once "I did it."

"What?" Ward looked stunned.

"Wait, what?" Wynonna shook her head quickly and stepped off the last stair. She grabbed a hold of her sister's arm and tried to pull her attention toward her. Her eyes narrowed in a worried stare when Nicole finally looked at her "Don't do this. I can handle him. I-"

"It was me" Nicole repeated again with her eyes still on her sister. She gave a nod, silently assuring Wynonna that it would be alright before she slowly turned her head and focused back on Ward. "I smashed your cruiser."

“What are you do-”

“I got fed up with the way you’ve been treating me so I decided to take it out on your car” Nicole cut Wynonna off and stepped away from her. She closed the gap between herself and Ward and gave a bored looking shrug to the man “What are you going to do? Arrest me?”

“I knew I shoulda-”

“Shoulda what?” Nicole hissed at the man as he grabbed her arm and gave her a tug to try and intimidate her. She was terrified but she also knew that she had nothing to lose now. “Shoulda beat me senseless to teach me a lesson? I’m not afraid of you anymore so you better think of another way to get your point across.”

Ward looked absolutely dumbfounded by Nicole’s sudden fearlessness toward him. He stared blankly for a few seconds as if trying to process what was going on. After a moment he shook his head and did his best to give her an intimidating scowl “Maybe a night in jail will teach you a lesson.”

“You can’t arrest me” Nicole let out a laugh at that and pulled her arm fiercely out of Ward’s grip. “I’m sixteen, dumbass.”

“You watch your mouth” Ward snarled and lifted his hand in the air as if he were about to swing it at her.

“How about you lock her up in the holding cell?” Wynonna cut in quickly, stepping between her father and her sister. She stared at the man seriously and gave a shrug “Hold her for the day, let her see the sort of scumbags that come into the station. I mean, shit…” She suddenly looked scared and gave a nod as she spoke “...that scared the Hell out of me. I haven’t been back since.”

“What are you getting at?” Ward backed up now and eyed Wynonna over carefully. She had never agreed with him in her life, especially when it came to something concerning Nicole. 

“Obviously this dumbass is acting out-”

“Hey!” Nicole frowned at the words.

“And I’m afraid she’s going to really piss you off one day so…” Wynonna shrugged and glanced back at Nicole. In the brief moment that their eyes met, she gave her younger sister a smirk that told her it was all part of her plan. She then looked back at Ward and nodded “...I love her but she needs to learn some boundaries before she gets out of hand.”

Ward was not really buying it. He stood there looking between the two girls suspiciously for a few moments. Wynonna was being too insistent and Nicole did not look surprised enough by said insistence. He had a feeling something was going on but he couldn’t quite figure it out. After a moment of thought about it he gave his head a shake and motioned between the two “You are up to something. I am not letting either of you out of my sight today.”

“What about school?” Nicole huffed in fake protest. She was suspended for the day so she wasn’t really worried about missing school.

“Yeah. Besides, what are you going to do? You just going to sit home and babysit us all day? What about the fine people of Purgatory that need your protection?” Wynonna was almost mocking the man now, daring him to try and keep an eye on the both of them all day.

“I’m going to put her in the holding cell” Ward motioned to Nicole but nodded at Wynonna. “That means you’re coming to the station with me, too. I will put you to work.”

“I’d rather go to school” Wynonna grumbled with a roll of her eyes.

Ward looked slowly back and forth between the sisters, his head shaking slightly and his eyes scanning them both suspiciously. “The two of you are trying to get away with something and I’m not gonna allow it. You’re both coming with me to work.” He focused on Nicole and his arms folded firmly across his chest as he scowled at the girl “You are going to work off the damage you did to my cruiser.”

Nicole rolled her eyes as if she were annoyed but, really, she was kind of interested to see what Wynonna had up her sleeve. If this meant she had to take the punishment from Ward Earp, her not father, then she would. Besides, she needed to be nearby just in case the man went too far and Wynonna decided to go rogue and blow up at him.

“Go get dressed” He pointed at Nicole then slowly flicked the motion toward Wynonna. “Both of you. Unlike you two useless sacks, I have shit to do today.”

Wynonna had started to say something but Nicole turned and quickly grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the steps to stop her. She hurried up the stairs, basically dragging Wynonna behind her, until they hit the landing at the top of the staircase. She quickly released the older girl’s arm and gave her a wide-eyed head shake “I don’t think I like whatever idea you have swirling around your head.”

“Please” Wynonna huffed in amusement and waved Nicole off as she turned toward her bedroom. “What I have in mind is child’s play.”

“What do you have in mind?” Nicole hurried to follow Wynonna as she moved down the hall to her room.

“I’ll tell you later” Wynonna brushed her sister off with a flick of her wrist as she reached her bedroom door.

“Wynonna, I don’t want you to get in over your head and do something-”

“Listen” Wynonna turned to look at Nicole with a serious look in her eyes. “I’ve got it under control. Besides, the less you know the better. That way you don’t have to fake innocence when someone asks you if you know anything.”

Nicole opened her mouth to argue but stopped. She could see the certainty in her sister’s eyes which, somehow, lent a sense of comfort to her. She let out a soft sigh and gave a little nod to show she wouldn’t fight her any longer. “Just promise me you’ll ask for help if you need it?”

“You’ve already helped me more than I could have asked for” Wynonna let out a laugh and motioned to the staircase behind Nicole. “You taking blame for the cruiser eliminated my need to escape the holding cell. I’m a step ahead in my plan so thanks for that.”

Nicole gave a crooked, humble smile and shrugged slightly “I figured when it’s all said and done you still have to deal with him. I didn’t want him to hate you more than he needs to.”

Wynonna gave a roll of her eyes and nudged Nicole with her shoulder “Now you’re the one sticking up for me, huh? Looks like I’ve taught you well.”

Nicole nodded just once as her smile faded slightly “Just be careful today, okay? If he catches onto whatever it is you have planned I’m afraid of how he will react.”

“He will probably just think I’m trying to break into his bank account or something” Wynonna shrugged off the worry and gave Nicole a nod “It’s an advantage that he thinks so little of me, sometimes.”

Nicole frowned at the words because she had always been so wrapped up in how Ward had treated her that she never stopped to think about how terrible he had been to Wynonna as well. She let out a heavy sigh and put a hand on her sister’s shoulder “Let’s make him regret ever being a scrote to us.”

“And then some, Patch” Wynonna gave her sister a wink then turned toward her room. “Now go get dressed before he gets so pissed he locks us both up. That won’t work in anyone’s favor.”

Nicole nodded in agreement and turned toward her room. As she worked to get dressed her mind was racing. Her life had been such a whirlwind over the last 24 hours or so. She had faced the lowest of lows as well as the highest highs and she had a feeling that the ups and downs were only just beginning. She was sure she was in for a wild ride.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Nicole hung her forearms through the top portion of the bars of the holding cell. She let out a heavy sigh as she looked around. It was a slow day at the station which led very quickly to her boredom. Wynonna was busy doing something and every time she passed by the cell she told Nicole she didn’t have time to talk. This meant Nicole had to entertain herself. With no one else in the holding cell and most of the officers actually working, she was forced to turn to her phone which Wynonna had slipped back to her on her first pass by the cell.

She had texted Jeremy and Waverly but they were both in class so they had yet to respond. This meant she had to wait. She didn’t dare use her phone for games or anything else because if she got caught, especially by Ward, she would get it taken away again then she would have nothing to pass the time.

“Wynonna” Nicole tried to yell whisper, which was a weird thing to do. Her sister was sitting at a desk near the front of the station pretending to alphabetize files.

Wynonna had her feet kicked up on a desk throwing random papers into random file folders while she ate a donut that she held through the hole by putting a finger through it. Honestly, this wasn’t too bad. At least she got to eat donuts instead of sitting through boring lectures at school. Her eyes were locked intently on the window that allowed her a perfect view into her father’s office. She had been watching him all morning waiting for the chance to sneak in and try to hack his computer.

“Wynonna!” Nicole dropped her attempt at being subtle and just yelled the name now. A few of the officers puttering around the station stopped to look up at Nicole but didn’t do much else. They were used to the presence of Ward’s children at the station. They were almost like honorary officers. A lot of the people that worked there liked when the girls stopped by. The girls were actually pretty pleasant to be around which was a nice change from dealing with Sheriff Ward all the time.

Wynonna pushed back in her chair and half turned her head in the direction of the holding cell but kept her eyes focused on the office she had been watching all day “What do you want you scumbag?”

“Scumbag?” Nicole breathed out an offended sounding gasp.

Wynonna smirked and turned to look at Nicole across the station fully now “You’re behind bars, ain’t ya? Only scumbags get locked up.” She smirked in amusement at herself. They had been told more times than they could recount about all the scumbags the Sheriff had put away. It was a surprisingly mild term considering the man had an affinity for foul language.

Nicole rolled her eyes at that and gave her head a shake “Will you come here, please?”

“Bathroom break isn’t for another…” Wynonna glanced at her wrist, which had no watch, and shrugged as her eyes fell back to the Sheriff’s office “....no special treatment, scumbag.”

Nicole let out an annoyed sounding sigh and decided to give up. Obviously Wynonna was enjoying tormenting her way too much. She also seemed kind of distracted so Nicole decided to just relent for the moment. She turned her back and leaned against the bars of the cell as she checked her phone. Her heart leapt into her throat when she saw she had a message from Waverly. 

She glanced over her shoulder to make sure the coast was clear before she opened the message and read it over. 

“What do you mean you’re in jail? What happened?”

Nicole laughed softly because she knew telling Waverly she was locked up for the day would cause her to freak out. She couldn’t resist teasing her just a bit. Plus, she kind of liked knowing that Waverly cared enough to worry why she was locked up.

She once more glanced around and when no one was paying her any attention she quickly turned back to her phone and started to type out a response.

“Wynonna, get in here” Ward’s voice broke the relative silence that filled the police station that morning.

Nicole quickly stuffed the phone in her pocket in a panic as she turned around to look back at where her sister had been sitting.

Wynonna yawned and stood up slowly from her desk. She stuffed the rest of the donut she had been eating into her mouth then moved to the door of his office. She leaned against the doorframe and although it was quiet in the station the conversation had been low enough that making out what was said from Nicole’s vantage point was impossible.

There was an obvious back and forth and Wynonna looked irritated by what was being said. Ward, in turn, looked impatient with his middle daughter. Youngest daughter? That was still to be determined considering the mystery surrounding the baby bump Michelle had been sporting around the time Nicole had been born.

Nicole gave a shake of her head to push that thought away as she watched the quiet exchange through the window of the office. It lasted only a few more moments before Ward was nudging Wynonna out of his office then using his key to lock the door. “Just finish the work I gave you and then you and…” He motioned toward Nicole in her cell and scowled “...can go home for lunch.”

Wynonna gave the man a sarcastic salute to acknowledge what he had said. Then as he turned and stormed from the station, her salute turned into her flipping him the bird. She watched him go and once he was gone she let out a soft laugh and headed toward Nicole.

“What’s happening?” Nicole gripped the bars and stared at Wynonna with wide eyes. “What did he say?”

“So he’s been dealing with insurance shit all morning because of his cruiser” Wynonna chuckled as she reached into the pocket of her jeans and fished out the ring of keys she always had on her that did not belong to her. “He has to go meet someone from the state at the tow yard so they can document the damage or some shit. That buys us some time.”

“Time for what?” Nicole watched as Wynonna flipped through keys until she found the one she was looking for and stuffed it into the lock on the holding cell. When it popped open, she let out a soft laugh “I am not even going to ask how you have the keys to the cell.”

“Please” Wynonna let out a sputtering laugh as she pulled the door open and motioned for Nicole to exit her cage. “I had a set of copies made as soon as possible. Do you remember a couple years back when daddy-” She stopped because, well, Ward was not Nicole’s father. She gave her an apologetic look and frowned “...when No-Nuts lost his keys and we tore the house apart?’

Nicole frowned at Wynonna correcting herself. Yeah, sure, Ward was not her father but that did not mean Wynonna had to watch how she addressed the man around her. It did not hurt her feelings. If anything, she was relieved to know she didn’t share his blood. It made her sad that she didn’t share Wynonna’s blood, though. She let out a sad sounding sigh at that thought and tried to shake it away as she focused back on what Wynonna had been saying “You stole his keys and made copies of them?”

“Of course I did,” Wynonna mumbled as if that should have been obvious. “Anyway” She waved it off as the two of them moved across the station toward the Sheriff’s office. She flipped through a few keys on the ring until she found the one she wanted. She looked around and when she made eye contact with the new officer who was manning the front desk she smiled right at him and unlocked the door. She then looked at Nicole and gave her a nod “I need you to play lookout for me. Let me know if the Great White Ass Shark is on his way back.”

“Wait, Wynonna, what are you going to do?” Nicole followed Wynonna into the office instead of standing watch outside like she had been told. 

“Just…” Wynonna motioned out of the office as she sat at the desk and started to type on the keyboard. “Dude, just go stand watch, please. If he sees you out of the cell tell him you were waiting for me to take a shit so we could go to lunch.”

“That’s gross” Nicole rolled her eyes and stood there with her arms folded across her chest. “Just tell me what you’re looking for.”

“Anything” Wynonna shrugged as her eyes focused on the screen and her fingers flew over the keyboard. “Everything. I don’t know, Red. I just know that I will know it when I see it.”

“See what?” Nicole huffed out a sigh and dropped her arms.

“Dude!” Wynonna looked up and motioned again for her sister to leave the office. Yes, her sister. Nicole was still her sister no matter what. Adopted siblings were still siblings.

“Fine!” Nicole threw her hands up in frustration. “But hurry, okay? I stood up to him this morning but I’m not sure I could hold him off like that again.”

Wynonna nodded but was already focused on what she was doing again.

Nicole sighed and left the office. She moved toward the front of the station, chewing her lip nervously as she did so. She stood in the doorway of the corridor that connected the office area of the station and the front doors. She peeked out at the front door before she looked shyly at the officer behind the front desk. She offered him a weak smile “So, you’re new.”

The man gave a nod. He looked at Nicole suspiciously then slowly turned to look at Wynonna. He stared for a moment then turned back toward Nicole “I don’t think you’re supposed to be out of holding and I know she is definitely not supposed to be in his office.”

“We’re his daughters” Nicole laughed as casually as she could, as if it were normal. It kind of was. When they were younger, especially, they had run around the station doing whatever they wanted so long as they didn’t get into any of the restricted areas which, of course, they did as soon as Ward turned his back. “Besides, she has keys!” Nicole motioned to Wynonna in the Sheriff’s office and shrugged as a soft smile came to her lips. “She locked me up as a prank. She does it all the time.”

The man just gave a single, slow nod. He eyed her again as if he wasn’t sure what to make of her before he looked back down to his paperwork. 

“Just don’t say anything, alright?” Nicole’s stomach knotted with worry. She knew most of the people who worked in the station didn’t care what they did because, all in all, they were good kids. But this guy was new and she had no idea if he was the type to report everything that went on when Ward was away.

“I don’t know. I really need this job” The man looked up with a frown on his lips. “I would hate to get fired for something like this.”

“Please” Nicole pouted and batted her eyelashes a little bit. If there was one thing her mother had taught her it was that most men were too weak to resist a little flirtatious eye batting from a woman. Well, Michelle wasn’t her mother but, whatever. The lesson still held the same value.

“Don’t do that” Wynonna groaned in disapproval as she came up to the front desk. She nudged Nicole out of the way then turned to look at the officer. “Hi… Lonnie, is it?” She tapped the man’s name tag then let out a soft laugh when he nodded in agreement. “So, you’re going to take this…” She handed over a hundred dollar bill and slid her arm around Nicole’s shoulders “...and you’re gonna keep your lips shut or I will tell our beloved Sheriff that you not only let his underaged daughter out of her cell but you then proceeded to flirt with her.”

“Hey, no I didn’t!”

“That’s what I saw” Nicole nodded in quick agreement to what Wynonna had said then gave the man a crooked smile that held a mix of amusement and apology. She felt bad bribing him and blackmailing him but, hey, Wynonna had always taught her to follow her lead whenever she started talking them out of a situation.

“Sounds like we have a deal” Wynonna smirked at the fact that Nicole agreed without hesitation. That was just further proof that this girl was truly her sister. She gave the man a wink and waved as she guided Nicole to turn away and head for the door “Have a nice day, Larry!”

“It’s Lonnie!”

His shout was barely heard as the sisters walked together in laughter out of the station and into the cold afternoon air. As the coldness surrounded them, their laughter died down, and Nicole stepped away from her sister. She gave Wynonna a curious look and shrugged expectantly “What did you find?”

“Woah, slow down Speedy Gonzalez” Wynonna laughed as she zipped her coat over herself then motioned towards Shorty’s that sat diagonally across the street from where they stood “How about we get some lunch and carry on as if we aren’t up to something. It’ll drive Sheriff Shitbag crazy waiting for us to act out.”

Nicole huffed out in frustration that Wynonna was acting so cavalier about it all. She was about to scold her but was stopped short when she noticed her sister had already started across the street. She rolled her eyes and hurried to catch up. She stuffed her hands into her pockets as she fell in stride next to her “Are you going to make me wait all day?”

Wynonna just cast an amused smirk at her sister and shrugged as she reached for the door handle once they reached the most popular establishment in Purgatory. She motioned for Nicole to go ahead inside then followed suit. As the girls opened the second door and were met with the heat of the building, Wynonna smiled. She loved being out and about in town during the day. She liked seeing what the adults of Purgatory did with their time. Seemed a lot of them stopped by Shorty’s at least once a day. 

“Good afternoon, ladies” Gus, the lady who owned the bar, greeted them as they approached the bar top. “No school today?”

“Haven’t ya heard?” Wynonna motioned to Nicole as she moved to sit on one of the barstools “This one spent the morning in lock up. I came by to spring her from the joint.”

Gus laughed very softly at Wynonna as she reached for a couple of glasses. She filled them both with soda before setting them in front of the teenagers. Everyone in town thought the Earp girls were a burden but Gus found them to be nothing of the sort. She felt a little positive attention from an adult was all they needed so she did her best to be kind to them. She saw Wynonna frequently but was surprised to see Nicole with her today, especially since it was during school hours.

“What did you do?” Gus asked Nicole as she slid the food menu toward the girls on the bar. 

“I didn’t do anything” Nicole huffed as she looked down at the menu.

“Mhm” Gus acted like she didn’t believe her. Really, though, she was surprised to hear Nicole had been in trouble at all. The girl was known around town to be the only well-behaved one of the bunch. She smirked at Wynonna and gave a nod toward Nicole “Your influence is finally rubbing off on her, huh?”

“I couldn’t be prouder” Wynonna patted Nicole annoyingly hard on the back, which gained a grunt of disliking from her sister. She chuckled at herself before focusing back on the menu. “What’s good today?”

“Same shit, different day” Gus shrugged as she took the menu from Wynonna when it was handed to her. “Burger and fries?”

Wynonna nodded then got up from the bar and motioned toward the stairs that led to the upstairs apartment where Gus lived. “Can I use the can?”

Gus barely acknowledged the request with a flick of her hand as she looked at Nicole studying the menu. She smiled at her, seeing she seemed undecided, and gave a nod “You’ll love the tuna salad. We have homemade potato chips.”

“Sounds great. But will you hold the pickles?” Nicole asked politely as she handed over the menu.

Gus let out a soft laugh as she took the menu, nodding in acknowledgment as she turned to the computer to input the order and send it to the kitchen in the back. It took a few moments and once she was done she looked back at Nicole with a curious smile on her lips “How have you been, dear?”

Nicole just shrugged because she had no idea how to answer that question. It was a loaded one and even if she felt safe enough to divulge what was happening she wouldn’t even know where to begin. So instead of trying to talk around that she just shrugged and decided to talk about something she wouldn’t have to lie about “I just started working on my science project for the term.”

“You were always the smart one” Gus gave her a very genuine nod at that before her attention was pulled away when someone hollered for a refill. She rolled her eyes but that was about it. She had been tending bar most of her life so the impolite nature of her patrons barely affected her anymore. She just grabbed a fresh beer glass and moved to the tap to fill it up. “What are you working on?”

“Ah, well….” Nicole didn’t wanna lie so she just decided on a half truth. “We are still kind of bouncing ideas off one another.” So it wasn’t totally true but it was close enough.

“We?” Gus looked curious again and motioned vaguely toward the staircase that Wynonna had disappeared up a few minutes earlier. “You finally got her to focus on school?”

“Oh, no, not her” Nicole let out a laugh like that was a silly notion. She knew her sister wasn’t dumb but she did the least amount of work that allowed her to slide by with a passing grade. “No, Waverly and I are-”

“Waverly?” This seemed to really pique Gus’ interest and it was easy to see that even an older woman was not immune to the town gossip.

Nicole blushed and dropped her eyes to where her hands tore absent-mindedly at the paper wrapper from her straw as her head nodded slightly.

“Hmm” Gus seemed perplexed by the news. The sound had not been filled with judgment, though. She took it for what it was and just nodded. That was definitely an interesting tidbit to learn, that was for sure.

There was a bit of awkwardness from Nicole as she watched Gus now silently bustling around the bar to fill a few more drink orders that had come in while she chatted with Nicole. She wondered what was going on in the woman’s mind. Thankfully, Wynonna reappeared after what felt like forever. She gave Nicole a crooked, half-hearted smile then motioned to Gus “Did she put in our food order?”

“Where have you been?” Nicole sounded annoyed until she actually looked at Wynonna and saw her demeanor. She looked upset. Not sad, or angry, though. Disturbed, maybe? She couldn’t place it and that worried Nicole even more. For as shut off as Wynonna could be with her emotions, Nicole had never had an issue with reading what her sister was feeling so to be unable to sort it out in that moment really unnerved Nicole.

“Find it alright?” Gus asked Wynonna with a curious eyebrow raised on her forehead as she set the plates of food in front of the girls.

Wynonna gave a nod to Gus but didn’t say anything else. Her eyes dropped and she focused on her food. She wasn’t particularly hungry but she pretended to care about the toppings of her burger so she wouldn’t be asked anything else.

Nicole saw the exchange and was growing more confused by the moment. It was like Gus and Wynonna had a secret they weren’t sharing or something. She glanced between the other two but no more was said. Gus instead gave Nicole a smile and asked her if she needed anything else and all Nicole could manage to do was shake her head.

A weird silence filled the space between the sisters and Gus for the rest of their lunch. Nicole tried to eat but she was too distracted by whatever exchange she had just witnessed. She wasn’t sure why her sister felt whatever she felt. She wasn’t sure what was going on between Wynonna and Gus. All she knew was something unspoken had transpired and now she couldn’t wait to get out of there and be alone with her sister so she could get some answers.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

“Okay, you are really freaking me out” Nicole paced in front of where Wynonna was leaning against the front of her truck. It was slowly fading into dusk and the sisters found themselves on the outskirts of town near the Purgatory sign. It was their special place. Sometimes good things happened when they ventured out to the boundaries of town and sometimes bad things came from it. Either way, it was the place they shared big life events so the fact that they were there now was starting to worry Nicole.

Wynonna hadn’t said a word to her sister since sitting back at the bar. Nicole had tried, multiple times, to engage her in conversation but it hadn’t worked. She gave in quickly and hoped that once they ate and left Shorty’s she could get Wynonna to open up. That hadn’t been the case. Despite Nicole’s probing, Wynonna had stayed quiet. The only answer she gave was when Nicole asked where she had gotten a hundred dollar bill to bribe Lonnie with. A bit of amusement had flickered over her features as she admitted to stealing it from Ward’s wallet.

Since that moment, Wynonna had been silent and stoic. Even now, as Nicole paced in front of the truck begging for answers, she stayed quiet. She had been trying to come up with a way to tell Nicole what she had learned.

“What’s wrong” Nicole let out an exhausted sounding sigh and focused on her sister. She bit at her lower lip as her brows curled together in concern. “Whatever it is, I can take it. I mean it can’t get much worse than what I already know.”

“You’d think” Wynonna mumbled under her breath as she pushed off the front of the truck. She took a few steps toward Nicole and shook her head slightly. She wasn’t sure she could put into words what she needed to say. She was still wrapping her mind around it herself. 

“What does that mean?” Nicole heard Wynonna’s grumbling and it only served to worry her more. She took a step toward her and reached out to take hold of one of her hands. “Please, Wynonna, just spit it out. I can handle it. Whatever happened or whatever you found, I know I will be able to deal with it because I have you by my side.”

“This entire thing isn’t only about you” Wynonna snapped as her hand ripped away from Nicole. She immediately realized her reaction was inappropriate and she let out an apologetic sigh. “Shit, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap. I just…”

Nicole had been hurt at first by the sudden outburst but that feeling faded as soon as she saw the way Wynonna’s entire body deflated in defeat. Once more she worried that something was terribly wrong. Her easy-going, couldn’t care less, chill and mild sister was suddenly wound as tightly as a clock and that was more disconcerting than anything. She focused on that feeling and spoke gently “I wasn’t trying to make it all about me. I just assumed you found something about my real parents, that’s all.”

Wynonna let out a breath as if what Nicole had said was a loaded assumption. She looked up at her sister with wide eyes and shook her head “I found a whole shit ton of something about more people than I expected, Red.”

Nicole blinked a few times in confusion. She really wished Wynonna would stop beating around the bush and just come out with it. She was also very worried because her older sister was the straight forward type. She was always quick to be the one to tell it like it was no matter what the reaction might be so the fact that she was now hesitating really threw up a red flag for Nicole. She managed to nod just once as her arms folded across her chest. She cleared her throat and spoke gently, so as not to rush Wynonna into delivering whatever bad news she had to tell. “Well, I’m here to listen if you care to share anything you’ve found.”

“I just…” Wynonna looked like she was struggling to find the words. She opened her mouth to start but stopped herself. She tilted her head to the side and gave thought to what she wanted to say before trying again. Once more her mouth opened but nothing came out. She huffed out in frustration as she closed her mouth and curled her brows into a scowl at herself. She shook her head as her eyes lifted to focus on Nicole and it showed in her gaze just how flabbergasted by the information she was. “It’s really fucked up, Red. Like...really…” She puffed out her cheeks and held her hands around an invisible something. She then used her hands to indicate a sort of exploding motion as she let the puff of air she had been holding in her cheeks out at the same time.

Nicole’s concern grew more and more with each word Wynonna spoke. After the little charade of an explosion, she was at her tipping point. She reached out and took hold of both of Wynonna’s hands. She gripped tightly, desperately, as she set a pleading stare on her sister. “Please, just fucking tell me. You’re scaring the Hell out of me.”

“He’s a murderer, Nicole” Wynonna’s face was immediately consumed with seriousness as she spoke the words a little more abruptly than she had meant to. Realizing what she had just blurted out, she pulled her hands from within Nicole’s and shook her head. She stepped back and pushed a hand through her hair as a heavy sigh left her lips. 

“What?” Nicole barely got the word out before Wynonna had started talking again.

“I knew he was a drunk but I never thought…” Wynonna licked her lips as her eyes fell to the ground a few feet away from her. She stared there blankly and shook her head as she tried to wrap her mind around the truth of it all. “I never thought he’d do something like that.”

“Like what?” Nicole’s eyes settled widely on her sister. Her heart was racing. She wasn’t even sure what was happening but she knew it was huge. “What happened?”

Wynonna cleared her throat as her eyes shifted focus once more. They landed on Nicole but she didn’t seem to really be seeing the girl. She kept her empty eyes on her younger sister as she spoke “It was the night you were born. I guess Momma went into labor early. He was drunk as a skunk when he got the news. The dumbass got behind the wheel instead of calling a cab or a coworker or anyone else. He was rushing to the hospital when…” She blinked once, holding her eyes closed for a few seconds, before shifting his gaze to find Nicole watching her. “He killed them.”

Nicole felt numb. She wasn’t sure her lungs worked any longer. She stood there stunned and felt like she very well might pass out on the spot. Her father had been driving drunk and killed someone the night she was born. Wait, not her father. Ward Earp. Wait, was that who Wynonna was talking about? She clung to that thought as she shook herself out of the shock she felt and mumbled out the question “Daddy?”

Wynonna snorted in disgust as she nodded at the inquiry “One in the same, Nicole. Only…” She motioned to the younger girl as a silent reminder that the man was not actually her father before she let out a heavy sigh. “The woman in the couple he hit was pregnant. They were in town visiting family before having the baby. The accident caused her to go into labor. The man...” She bit her lip and looked away because she wasn’t sure she could speak the truth. That made it all too real. She licked her lips and shook her head again “...he died at the scene as his wife was rushed to the hospital.”

Nicole’s eyes fluttered in surprise and shock. Ward had killed someone rushing to the hospital to be with his own wife who was in labor. The night she was born someone else died. She couldn’t believe it. Her life had caused a death. Not directly, of course, and not because of her own actions but it still didn’t make the news any less traumatic.

“The other woman died shortly after giving birth” Wynonna continued weakly, the words trembling from her lips. Her eyes were locked on a random patch of rocks and dirt on the ground because she couldn’t look Nicole in the eyes. Not only had she just found out that her father was a murderer but she had inadvertently discovered the truth about her sister’s parents.

“That’s terrible” Nicole felt a tear run down her cheek and wondered where it had come from. She blinked and felt a few more follow. Her eyes shifted to Wynonna and she let out a sigh as heavy as the weight that sat on her chest. “How is he allowed to be Sheriff? How is he not in jail for life?” Her mind was running a mile a minute and the questions were pouring out of her before she could comprehend them. Her brows creased in concern as her heart broke with the last question that poured from her lips “What happened to that baby?” 

Wynonna looked up in surprise at the last question from Nicole. She wasn’t sure she had heard it correctly. As she focused on the sad, horrified look on her little sister’s face she realized that Nicole had not fully grasped what she was trying to tell her. She stared at her blankly for a few seconds and when it was clear that Nicole had totally missed the point of the story, she felt herself starting to cry as she croaked the truth out “You’re that baby, Nicole.”

The words hit Nicole like a freight train to the heart. All the air left her lungs. All the blood fell to her feet. She went pale and cold and it felt like her head was floating off of her shoulders. The only thing she could understand was her sister staring at her with pity, crying her eyes out. Then even that started to fade into the distance. She could see Wynonna’s mouth moving but she couldn’t hear a word she said and soon darkness consumed her until consciousness completely left her body.

~.~.~.~.~.~.


	9. “The Universe doesn't like secrets. It conspires to reveal the truth, to lead you to it.”

“How you feeling?” Wynonna asked softly as she handed over another candy bar that she had stashed in her truck.

Nicole stared blankly at the lock on the glove compartment in front of her. She was still trying to get a grip on the information she had learned. It was all too much to handle. It had caused her to black out from shock. Luckily, Wynonna had been quick to act and had been able to catch her before she hit the ground. She had then dragged Nicole to the truck and set her inside before grabbing a water bottle and pouring it all over her to wake her up. Now Nicole sat there wet, cold, dizzy, and really confused.

“Yeah” Wynonna agreed to Nicole’s non-response as if it were a response. She had reacted the exact same way and that is why she had been completely silent on her drive out to the sign after leaving Shorty’s. She had been processing. Even though the news centered around the fate of Nicole’s parents it had also involved Wynonna’s father which was, well, kind of a big deal too. Neither of them were sitting in that truck having a good time, that was for sure.

“My parents are dead” Nicole whispered as she reached out to take the candy bar that Wynonna had been holding toward her for a few moments.

Wynonna nodded and looked at Nicole with a frown “And my father killed them.”

Nicole huffed through her nose as her eyes focused on the candy wrapper she was pulling open. “So did they adopt me because he felt bad for killing my parents?”

Wynonna shook her head this time. “I didn’t find any adoption records.”

“What did you find?” Nicole suddenly seemed to regain a little bit of life as she looked over to Wynonna for the first time in longer than she could recall. “And how did you find it?”

“I hacked into Ward’s files on his computer at the station. I basically looked up all the birth records and hospital records from the day you were born. I figured if Momma had faked a pregnancy or whatever then there would be like, I dunno, a record of it?” Wynonna shrugged because she was realizing she was kind of out of her depth here. “Basically any sort of proof of existence from that day that I could find I copied over to this...” She pulled her hand out of her pocket to reveal a thumb drive she had been carrying with her all day.

Nicole’s eyes widened as she looked at the thumb drive. She had not expected that. She wasn’t sure why she hadn’t thought of that, but she hadn’t. Wynonna was good in that way, though. She was always thinking ahead. It was one of the many things she admired about her sister. 

“Anyway” Wynonna shrugged and put the thumb drive back into her pocket. “Between the files on here and what Gus has told me, I filled in the blanks about what really happened that night.”

“Wait, what?” Nicole, somehow, mustered more surprise as her eyes widened again. “Gus? What does she have to do with this?”

“She hears everything, Nicole” Wynonna breathed the words out as if that should have been obvious. “People talk when they drink and she has owned Shorty’s long enough that she knows every dirty secret this town holds.”

Nicole’s eyes fluttered before finally drawing closed. She once more had to find a way to focus on what she had just learned. She had consumed so much information over the past day or so that it was all starting to mix together. She gave her head a shake as if trying to toss aside the unimportant stuff as her eyes opened and she focused on Wynonna “She’s known this entire time?”

Wynonna lifted one shoulder into a shrug as her head gave a sideways nod of confirmation. “When you started going on and on about the DNA test I started asking her questions. She’s pretty vague about a lot of things but she gives out just enough information that if you know where to look you can find what you want to know.”

“That’s why you knew you needed to hack the computer at the station” Nicole seemed to be grasping what had unfolded and she gave a nod to herself as she spoke the conclusion outloud.

“And that’s why I disappeared at lunch. Gus has old newspaper clippings and shit like that in her apartment upstairs. She told me I could look through them whenever I wanted” Wynonna motioned vaguely to nowhere in particular and gave a nod. “The information about the accident was pretty much glossed over in the newspapers. They covered it up because of who daddy is.”

“He wasn’t Sheriff back then” Nicole huffed out in disgust at the news.

“But he was in line to take the role and, well, he is an Earp. We all know that name is worth its weight in gold here in good old Purgatory” Wynonna let out a heavy sigh because she really, really hated the history her family name carried sometimes.

“So they knew?” Nicole again seemed surprised. She had no idea how she had any surprise left in the emotional tank to feel and yet, here she was hit with another wave of it. She thought it over for a moment, replaying what she had been told. A few things didn’t add up and as she came back to her senses more and more she started to single those pieces out. “Wait, he was drunk and rushing to the hospital because Momma was in labor-” She stopped and shook her head before correcting herself “-your Mom was in labor.” She let out a sigh because that felt gross. It was weird to have to adjust the details of your life that you thought had been true. It would take some time to get used to.

Wynonna nodded to confirm as a frown formed on her face. She hated that Nicole was already trying to separate herself from the Earp family. She couldn’t really blame her, given what they had learned, but it still hurt. She didn’t want Nicole to distance herself too much. They were, afterall, still family no matter what the DNA said.

“So what happened to that baby?” Nicole lifted both eyebrows at her own question as her gaze settled curiously on her sister. That’s right, Wynonna was still her sister, damn it. 

“That’s where things get weird” Wynonna immediately snorted at her own words because things were already weird. But she shook the thought away quickly before continuing “There isn’t any record of a second baby being born that day in Purgatory. In fact, the next birth certificate issued in the county wasn’t until two weeks later and that was for a baby boy.”

Again Nicole managed to produce another surprised reaction. She stared dumbfounded for a few long seconds as she processed what she had just heard. She gave her head a jostle as if trying to get the pieces to fall in place inside her mind as she blinked to focus on Wynonna “Your mom lost the baby that night?”

“No death certificates for a newborn that night” Wynonna shook her head to deny the inquiry from Nicole. “I told you it got weird, Red. There were two mothers in labor so it stands to reason there would be two birth certificates. If not on the same day then back to back days, you know, depending on however long the labor took or whatever. But there’s not. There is only one record of one baby.” She motioned to Nicole and gave a little shrug “You.”

“But” Nicole didn’t want to spiral back down the rabbit hole of shock that consumed her when she learned her parents had been killed that night so she quickly pushed past that and kept talking. If she didn’t keep asking her questions she was afraid they’d all pile up and she’d be more confused than she was now. “How do you know it’s me?”

“Because there’s no birth certificate for an Earp baby” Wynonna stated firmly so there was no doubt left about the fact that Nicole had been the other baby.

“That doesn’t-” Nicole’s brows creased and she shook her head again. It didn’t make sense. None of this made sense. She felt herself starting to lose control of her emotions as the intake of overwhelming information washed over her. A tear trickled down her cheek and she drew in a shaky breath to try and reign in her swirling emotions “What in the world is going on?”

“I don’t know” Wynonna felt her gut twist with agony seeing Nicole cry. She hated when her little sister cried. For as tough as she liked to act, deep down she was a huge softie for her baby sister. That’s right, Nicole always had and always would be her baby sister. She let out a sigh and slid across the truck seat in order to pull herself up next to Nicole. She slid her arm around her and gave as much of a comforting squeeze as she could at the weird angle “We will figure it out, alright?”

“You were right, Wynonna, I should have left well enough alone” Nicole sniffled as she leaned into her sister heavily. She closed her eyes and finally just let her emotions take over. Tears streamed steadily from her eyes now. “The truth is so much worse than not knowing if I really was an Earp.”

“You had to know,” Wynonna whispered softly, her hand rubbing lightly along Nicole’s right arm in an attempt to offer as much comfort as she could. “None of this is your fault. My father is an even shittier human being than I first thought, which somehow surprises me.” She shook her head and let out a heavy sigh as she gave into the fact that her family was even more terrible than the rest of the town thought. “But it’s good that we know now. That means we can figure out what really happened and, if nothing else, you can get some closure on who you really are.” She smiled very softly at that before adding “But for what it’s worth, you will always be an Earp to me.”

The corners of Nicole’s lips twitched into a slight smile at the words. Given what she had learned, it shouldn’t be an honor to be an Earp but hearing Wynonna call her one still felt like a big deal. Aside from Ward, the Earp family line held a lot of good, honorable people. Maybe she wasn’t the outlier of the family, afterall. She liked the thought of that.

“I’m exhausted” Nicole whispered as she pulled away from Wynonna’s sideways embrace and wiped at her eyes. She stared at the Purgatory sign in front of them and let out a defeated sounding sigh “I’d say we should go home but I’m not really sure where that is anymore.”

Wynonna reached out and took one of Nicole’s hands into her own. She gave it a tight squeeze and nodded as she spoke softly “I will always be home for you and you will always be home for me and as long as we have that nothing else matters.”

Nicole felt herself choking up at the words. This entire thing had really worked to soften Wynonna’s usually rock hard exterior. She had to admit she liked this side of her older sister. She returned the squeeze she had been given with her hand and glanced at Wynonna with a slight smile “I like the sound of that.”

“Me too” Wynonna whispered as she lifted the hand she held to her lips. She gave a soft kiss to Nicole’s knuckles then released the hand completely. She scooted back across the truck and started the engine. She glanced at her sister and gave a nod “Let’s go get some sleep. I heard everything looks better in the light of day but I call bullshit on that theory.”

Nicole laughed very softly at that and nodded in agreement “No shit. If anything, shedding more light on this will probably expose more secrets.”

“We can think about that tomorrow” Wynonna shrugged as she pulled the truck onto the road and headed for the Homestead.

Nothing more was said as they bounced down the road together both lost in their own thoughts. Nicole’s head was so full with conflicting information that she had no idea where to begin in processing it all. Her entire life had been a lie. Everything she had known or been told had been faked. She had no idea who she was at all and that scared the shit out of her. Even so, there was one emotion she could identify and focus on through all of that: sympathy. She felt horrible for Wynonna. When all was said and done, Nicole got a free pass out of this mess but Wynonna would have to deal with the fact that her own flesh and blood was tainted by the dumpster fire of a man known as Ward Earp and that, well, that was worse than anything else Nicole could imagine.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

“Wynonna” Nicole whispered softly as she gently shook her sleeping sister.

A soft groan came from the mess of blankets but that was about it.

“Hey, move over” Nicole whispered again as her gentle shaking turned to shoving.

“Noooo” Wynonna’s groggy voice protested from somewhere in the tangled mess of blankets and sheets.

“Come on, move.” Nicole insisted as she started to pull back the blankets in an attempt to untangle the mess and find room on the mattress.

Wynonna grunted. She then rolled over and lifted the mass of linens she was currently snuggled under. When she did so her comfy cave opened in silent welcoming to the intruder.

Nicole smiled and quickly crawled in beside her sister. She shifted on the bed to find a comfortable spot before pulling the blankets and sheets around herself tightly. She let out a soft sigh of contentment as the warmth surrounded her. 

She had always liked climbing into bed with Wynonna when she was younger. Sometimes it was a thunderstorm or sometimes it was because their parents were fighting. Sometimes she just felt lonely and wanted some company. Either way, it had been years since she had crawled into bed with her sister so it felt a little odd and yet, at the same time, totally natural.

“What’s wrong?” Wynonna grumbled as she rolled onto her stomach somewhere under all her coverings.

“Couldn’t sleep” Nicole whispered as she stared at the ceiling of Wynonna’s bedroom.

Wynonna was silent for a moment and Nicole thought she had fallen back to sleep. Then, out of nowhere, her arm slid across the younger girl’s torso and pulled her up against herself.

This made Nicole smile and relax into the embrace. Wynonna was right. No matter what happened, they would always be home to one another. That was the one thing that was making all of this seem even the slightest bit manageable.

~.~.~.~.~.

“I never wanted to step inside Purgatory’s library and I now know why” Wynonna groaned as she tossed another large book onto the table and watched a dust cloud rise into the air. “It’s like a fucking crypt in here.”

“Will you be quiet?” Nicole grumbled without looking up from the page she was carefully scanning. “If people know you’re here they are going to get suspicious.”

“I think the librarian is already on to us considering the gasp she let out when I walked in the front door” Wynonna mumbled through a laugh as she sat down in front of the huge book she had just tossed onto the table. It was Saturday and despite Wynonna’s protesting, they were spending the day trying to find answers. She knew it was important, and it was, but she also needed a bit of normalcy too or she felt she might go crazy. But she gave in because Nicole looked at her with sad, puppy dog eyes and she felt bad. “What are we looking for, exactly?”

Nicole looked up at Wynonna now and eyed the huge book she had in front of her. She shook her head and let out a soft laugh “I stopped looking at old newspaper articles like an hour ago. I’m now comparing every kid in my grade with the birth records on file.” She motioned to the sheet of paper with obvious scratch marks through names on it then nodded at the computer she was sitting next to “Everyone has to have a record of their birth somewhere, right?”

“Oh what the-” Wynonna groaned and shoved the huge book of bound newspaper articles away from her while scowling “Why didn’t you tell me you stopped looking for news about dead babies?”

“Because you were laughing at an article about the dog who accidentally set fire to the old wood mill” Nicole rolled her eyes at that.

“Oh yeah. That shit was funny” Wynonna smirked in amusement as she thought about the crazy article she had read not too long ago. After a few moments of reminiscing about the hilarity, she shook her head and focused back on her sister “So what should I be doing?”

“Uh…” Nicole looked at everything sprawled out on the tabletop and after a few seconds of thought she pushed a paper toward Wynonna. “You can research the couple that died that night.”

“The Haughts?” Wynonna frowned and took the paper that Nicole had pushed toward her. “Why don’t you do that? I mean…” She trailed off as a sad look moved over her features “...they’re your parents. I wouldn’t know what to look for.”

“Fine” Nicole let out a heavy sigh of frustration. She felt like Wynonna was not taking this seriously and it was really starting to get on her nerves. She shook her head and gave a dismissive flick toward the paper that Wynonna pushed back toward her “Why don't you go get us some lunch? Take a break. I can tell you need it.”

“Nicole, I’m really trying here. I just-”

“I know” Nicole stopped Wynonna from continuing and gave her a very patient look. “But it’s a lot and I’m sure you’re still reeling about what you learned about Ward so…” She offered a soft smile and nodded “Take a break and go find us some food.”

Wynonna was silently relieved that Nicole was giving her a break. Although her little sister had always been the type to get to the bottom of any issue, Wynonna was the type to bury it and pretend it didn’t exist. Unfortunately this was not something she could bury, and she understood that, but she was also having a hard time with the truth of it all. She was glad Nicole told her to take a break. She would make sure to take as long as she could before being called back to help.

“Don’t think too hard” She finally said as she stood from the table. She leaned over and touched a kiss to the top of her little sister’s head and gave a nod. “I don’t want you wasting that brain on this bullshit, alright?”

“Aye aye” Nicole gave Wynonna a playful salute then watched with a smile as she moved through the shelves in the library and out of sight. She knew this was hard for Wynonna but she appreciated the effort. It meant the world to her. Besides, they were too deep into it now and she knew that Wynonna wouldn’t be able to rest without any real answers either so she was determined to keep searching until all options were exhausted.

Without Wynonna distracting her, Nicole started to really move through her list of students. She wasn’t sure it would lead anywhere, but she had to try, right? She had run into a few kids on the list that didn’t have birth certificates on file within the county but she also knew those kids had not grown up in Purgatory so she would have to dig a little deeper to see if she could find the certificates from outside their little corner of the world. But, that was for later. Right now she was focusing on kids who had grown up there because, well, she had to start somewhere.

An unknown amount of time passed by as Nicole worked. She was so lost in what she was doing that she had no concept of time anyway. Her concentration was broken, though, when one of the names on the list produced an unexpected result. She blinked just once to readjust her eyes in an attempt to verify what she had just seen. When the same name came into focus she shook her head. That didn’t make any sense at all.

“Nicole?” A surprised, but pleasant voice broke the silence of Nicole’s little bubble.

When Nicole looked up it took her a few seconds to register who had spoken to her. When she realized who it was, she nearly leapt out of her skin. “Waverly!?” She tried to sound happy but it came out sounding a little panicked instead. She quickly crossed her arms over the papers she had been working from and tried to smile “Wh- What are you doing here?”

“I spend a lot of Saturdays at the library” Waverly laughed softly because Nicole was acting as if she had been caught doing something she shouldn’t be doing. She arched an eyebrow suspiciously and motioned to what Nicole was covering up “What are you up to?”

“I, uh, oh” Nicole looked at where her arms were crossed on the table. She then attempted a casual shrug and shifted her arms to pull the papers out of sight and into her lap. “Research.”

“For our project?” Waverly was absolutely sure that is not what Nicole was researching but she would go along with it to see if she could get the truth out of the girl. She moved around the table now and that is when the computer screen came into view. What she saw immediately piqued her interest “Birth records?” Her eyes widened and she looked at Nicole with wild excitement “Okay, you have to tell me what you’re doing now.”

Nicole closed her eyes and her head fell forward as she realized she was busted. She let out a heavy sigh and as she shifted on her seat toward the computer, she pulled the papers from her lap and pushed them behind herself in the chair. When she reopened her eyes she saw Waverly had pulled a chair up next to the computer and was looking expectantly at Nicole. At least she was smiling. Nicole was weak to that damn smile and the longer Waverly looked at her waiting for an answer, the harder Nicole found it to want to lie. Eventually, she motioned at the computer with a defeated sigh “I was matching birth certificates with kids in our class.”

Waverly eyed Nicole carefully, almost as if she had not understood what she was told. After a few moments of processing the information, she gave a nod and looked back to the computer “I am going to take a stab in the dark and guess this has nothing to do with our project.”

“I’m sorry” Nicole deflated in her chair with a loud sigh. “I know it’s important and all but something came up and I am just a little distracted by it.”

“It’s okay” Waverly spoke gently as her eyes settled kindly on Nicole. She could see she felt really bad and she wanted to assure the girl there was no reason for that. She reached out and gently put a hand on her knee “I figured something was up when you told me you were in jail yesterday and then I didn’t hear from you the rest of the day.”

“I wasn’t really in jail” Nicole mumbled and rolled her eyes at herself because it had been a stupid joke. She focused on Waverly and when she saw the patient, gentle gaze coming from her she felt herself melt a little. She had no idea what she had done in life to get lucky enough to have this amazing girl looking at her like that. Or what she had done to have the same amazing girl willingly kiss her. She smiled almost shyly at that. With everything else going on she had totally forgotten about Waverly and all the incredible time they had been spending together recently. She bit her lip, frowning suddenly out of guilt as she reached out and put a hand over Waverly’s “I suck. I kind of totally forgot about everything else going on.”

“Like I said, it’s totally alright” Waverly smiled as her hand turned over to allow her fingers to gently slide between Nicole’s. She gave a very light squeeze to show she was not upset and as she spoke again it was even and filled with genuine concern “Is everything okay?”

“No” Nicole answered bluntly before she could stop herself. When Waverly looked surprised to hear it, she let out a long sigh and shook her head. “I don’t even know where to start. I’ve learned so much shit in the last day and a half that it’s hard to believe.”

“You don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to,” Waverly spoke in a whisper as her hand once more gave a squeeze, trying to comfort Nicole as best she could. “I am here to listen or help in whatever capacity you are comfortable with.”

The way Waverly was looking at Nicole in that moment made it nearly impossible for her to not explode and tell her everything. Nearly impossible. She somehow held back and instead focused on something that had just occurred to her. She tilted her head to the side and lifted an eyebrow curiously as she spoke almost timidly now “When’s your birthday?”

“September 8th” Waverly laughed the answer out because, well, it was such an unexpected question. She had expected a far more loaded statement to come from Nicole’s lips. “Why do you ask?”

Nicole just shook her head and gave as casual of a shrug as she could manage “Just curious.”

Waverly had a pretty good bullshit detector and right now it was pinging. It also didn’t hurt that Nicole was not a very good liar. She didn’t know the girl very well but she could tell that dishonesty did not come naturally to her. “Seriously, Nicole, what’s going on?”

“I…” Nicole’s eyes shifted from Waverly to the computer screen and back again. Then she dropped her chin and let out another sigh. Her head shook because, well, she wasn’t sure what to say. She mulled it over for a moment before looking back up at a still very patient looking Waverly. “This is going to sound weird but have you ever seen your birth certificate?”

“Of course I-” Waverly had initially laughed out her response because it was a ridiculous question but she quickly cut herself off midway through. She tilted her head to the side as she really thought about it and realized in that moment that she had never seen her birth certificate. Her heart jumped into her throat as her eyes widened at herself. She looked at Nicole almost as if she had offended her for a few seconds before finally releasing a distressed sigh “Why would you ask me that?”

“I didn’t mean to offend you” Nicole stammered out quickly and motioned frantically to the computer screen she sat near. “I was just doing this, you know, to try and find some answers and I came across…” She paused then glanced out of the side of her eyes at Waverly. She bit her lip and once more dropped her chin as a guilty breath left her lips. “I wasn’t snooping on you or anything, I promise. I was looking at our entire class.”

“What did you find?” The question sprung from Waverly’s mouth before she could stop it. Nicole seemed panicked and it was now rubbing off on her.

“Nothing” Nicole said quickly and fumbled to try and grab the mouse as she realized Waverly was panicking too. She clicked a few times then motioned with fervor toward the screen “Literally, nothing. You don’t have a birth certificate on record with the county.”

“That doesn’t make any sense” Waverly’s lungs emptied as she breathed the words out in a hushed whisper. She leaned closer to the screen and looked at what Nicole had brought up. She checked her name, the spelling, the dates, over and over again to make sure there wasn’t an error. There wasn’t. The only error was the fact that there was no record of her birth.

“I know” Nicole gave a nod of agreement. She shifted on her chair and brought herself shoulder to shoulder with Waverly. The two of them stared at the screen as if it were some curious exhibit in a bizarre type of museum. After a few moments of silence between them, Nicole gave a casual shrug, which caused her shoulder to nudge into Waverly’s, and glanced at the girl “It could mean you weren’t born here. I haven’t checked outside the county yet.”

“No, I was born here” Waverly shook her head but kept her eyes on the computer screen. Her heart was beating so fast she was almost certain it was going to crack through her ribcage. She didn’t know what this meant. She wasn’t really sure why Nicole was looking at this information. She finally blinked and looked to the girl beside her and shrugged “Why are you looking at this?”

“Oh, um” Nicole let out a sputtering breath and motioned at the screen. She had no idea how she was going to explain this other than to be completely honest. She had no idea why she couldn’t just tell Waverly it was none of her business. Well, actually she did know why. She wanted Waverly to know about everything because she felt like if there was anyone that could relate to what she was going through it was the stunning girl she had been pining after for years.

She gave into her natural instincts and she decided to tell Waverly everything. She spent the next half hour or so recounting everything she had learned. She answered any question Waverly asked for which she had an answer. By the end of it, Waverly sat in her chair looking just as stunned as Nicole had felt the night before. Nicole finished her explanation with a nod of agreement to what Waverly’s face said she was feeling and motioned to the computer “So I thought maybe I could find out who the other baby was if I went through birth certificates.”

Waverly’s head shook. Her eyes fluttered. She was trying to focus. She looked utterly distressed at what she had just heard. She reached out and grabbed hold of Nicole’s hand desperately, as if that grip was the only thing keeping her grounded. When she managed to finally draw a breath in she looked up at Nicole. All color was drained from Waverly’s face. She looked weak, frail even, and when she spoke the strength matched her outward appearance “My parents.”

Nicole frowned at the way Waverly looked. She seemed completely drained of life. She almost looked like a ghost. She had never seen the confident, kind, funny girl she had crushed on for years look this way. It shook her to her core. She gave a nod to show she had acknowledged what Waverly said before she spoke gently, almost afraid a louder tone would hurt the delicate looking girl she sat next to “I know they died in a terrible accident. That’s why I didn’t want to tell you. I didn’t want it to bring up any bad feelings you might have.”

“No” Waverly shook the words away as if they were ridiculous. She seemed to gain a little strength now and when she spoke it was with more conviction than before “Nicole, my parents were hit and killed by a drunk driver.”

“What?” Nicole felt the blood drain from her face.

Waverly gave a single nod and sat up a little straighter. It seemed her body was refilling the strength it had lost. “That’s what my aunt told me. There was an accident and the other driver was drunk. She said it happened when I was just a few days old but I’d bet my life she lied about it.”

“Why would she lie?” Nicole’s voice was weak and she nearly choked on the words. This was not the reaction she had expected. “Why do you think that?”

Waverly just shook her head as her eyes settled on the screen again. She was silent for a few moments, her face twisted in concentration as she really thought over everything she had just learned. She drew in a steadying breath as she turned to look at Nicole again. She wiped a stray tear from her eye and tried to smile “I think we’ve both been lied to our entire lives and we deserve some answers.”

“Wait, Waverly where are you going?”

She shot up out of her chair suddenly and started to rush away. Nicole stood too, reaching out to grab hold of her arm to stop her gently. She refused to look back. She just gave her head a few shakes as she desperately tried to push away the tears she felt threatening to spill. She cleared her throat to hide the presence of the emotion forming in her voice and spoke softly “I’ll call you, okay? I just need a little time.”

“Okay” Nicole whispered because, well, what else could she say? She slowly let Waverly’s arm slide from her fingertips, feeling the warmth of the contact fade away until finally her hand was completely empty. She frowned and folded her arms across her chest as she watched Waverly disappear without another word. The last thing she would ever want to do was upset the girl she had longed for from afar. Now she somehow felt shittier than she did when the day started. Things just kept going from bad to worse.

“Woah, where’s the fire” Wynonna was nearly plowed over by Waverly as she stormed out of the library. She had managed to move out of the way before impact but as soon as she saw who had nearly ran into her she turned to yell at the girl out of instinct “Off to tattle on someone else you little snitch?”

“Leave her alone” Nicole had heard her sister’s voice and quickly rounded the corner to catch her before she could cause more trouble. She wasn’t quick enough, though, and the ugly accusation had already been spat at Waverly.

“You foul-mouthed, low-life, good for nothing piece of-” Waverly had whirled around and charged right at Wynonna. 

Luckily, Nicole was right there and had stepped between the two quickly. She put her hands on both of Waverly’s shoulders and pushed the girl back a few steps while catching her gaze “Take a breath, alright? I know you’re upset but this is not the way to deal with it. This isn’t her fault.”

Waverly pushed herself away from Nicole fiercely, fixing her with a scowl as she backpedaled “Your whole family is trash, Nicole. Be glad you aren’t actually related to them!”

Her shouts were loud enough to interrupt the silence that filled the entire library. Her words echoed off old books and dusty shelves. Everyone inside the building heard it. Nicole stood there looking absolutely stunned.

“Shit” Waverly realized what she had done and hurried over to Nicole. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean-”

Nicole ripped her hand away from the comforting touch that Waverly tried to lay against her arm. She stepped back and set the girl with a wounded scowl. Her head shook and when she spoke there was no doubt that she was absolutely devastated by what had been said “You should leave before you say something you’re really going to regret.”

“Nicole, I’m sorry!” Waverly attempted another step toward the girl but was met with another retreat by Nicole. Her heart hurt. Her head was spinning. Her entire world was crumbling and she felt like she was losing control of herself. She would never say something that hurtful. She was disgusted with herself. More importantly she had hurt the most innocently sweet person she had ever met. “Please, I didn’t mean it.”

“But she meant it” Wynonna stepped up and put herself between Nicole and Waverly. She put her hand on the smaller girl’s shoulder and gave a firm shove. Her eyes were filled with fire and it was taking everything she had not to strangle Waverly for what she had shouted for everyone to hear. “You’ll leave if you know what’s good for you.”

Waverly looked absolutely defeated. She deflated as she looked from Wynonna’s death glare to Nicole’s wounded face and back again. Realizing there was no way to make amends at the moment she finally turned and headed for the door with her head hanging in shame. She could not believe she let her emotions get the best of her like that.

“You alright?” Wynonna turned around and took hold of her sister’s face. She could see tears in her eyes and it nearly broke her damn heart. She kept her eyes on Nicole because if she looked up and saw people staring at them with their dumb mouths gaping open she was certain she would go off. “How about we get the Hell out of here.”

Nicole just nodded. She was embarrassed. She was devastated. She was heart broken. She had so many more emotions to pile on her mountain of emotions she had built up over the past couple days that it felt almost like some sick cosmic joke. She really could not believe how every single thing in her life had fallen apart so quickly. Even Waverly. Somehow, the budding whatever of a relationship they had been forming was gone now too. The only thing she had left was Wynonna. God, she wasn’t sure what she would do without her big sister.

Wynonna managed to gather all their things while Nicole stood there stupefied. She did her best to make sure not to leave anything behind before she guided Nicole from the library and out to her truck. Once the engine was started and they were on the road, she let out a sad sounding breath as her hand reached over to lay on her sister’s leg “That was really fucked up and I’m going to kill her for doing that to you.”

“No you won’t” Nicole mumbled for the first time since the exchange with Waverly.

“I will” Wynonna insisted with a nod. “I will murder her and hide the body. We have a lot of land, no one will ever find her.”

“Stop” Nicole barked out harshly. A new feeling was surging through her now. Maybe it was a culmination of everything manifesting as anger but she was suddenly powerless to stop the outburst. “I am sick of it all, Wynonna! The lies! The deceit! The rumors!” She kicked the glovebox in front of her on the dash and turned to glare at her sister. “There are real, actual lives that are being fucked with right now and I want to put a stop to it!”

“Okay, chill” Wynonna was surprised by the outburst and did not want to provoke her sister further. She lifted a hand in an attempt to gesture for Nicole to relax and gave a nod “I get that you’re pissed. Nothing is alright right now. Your entire world got turned on its head and you’re just trying to keep yourself from drowning. I get it. But you can’t let what Waverly said get to you.”

“It’s not her” Nicole deflated as a defeated sigh slipped through her lips. “It’s everything, Wynonna. I don’t know who to trust. I don’t know who will give me an honest answer. Fuck, I don’t even know my real name.”

“You’re Nicole Earp” Wynonna narrowed her eyes and spoke firmly. “That hasn’t changed.”

“Everything has changed” Nicole whispered as she sunk back against her seat. Her head rolled to the side and came to rest against the cool glass of the trunk window. She drew in a deep breath to try and calm herself as she watched the scenery fly by. She was quiet for a few minutes as she mulled it all over some more. She was thankful Wynonna hadn’t chosen to respond because, honestly, there was nothing anyone could say right now to make her feel better.

After a few minutes, she sat up a little straighter. She looked over at Wynonna and reached out to put a hand on her shoulder in a silent gesture to let her know she was not upset with her. As her hand dropped away she looked at her feet as a long, sorrowful sigh emptied from her lungs “I think Waverly might be involved in all of this.”

“What?” Surprise was evident in both Wynonna’s tone and her eyes when she looked at her sister.

“She said something to me in the library after I told her everything that had happened.”

“Why the Hell did you tell her anything?” Wynonna sounded distressed and annoyed at that fact.

“Because I figured if anyone could understand what I’m going through it’s her” Nicole felt a little guilty that she had included an outsider without telling Wynonna about it first but, hey, it wasn’t like they had agreed to keep it between themselves. 

Wynonna frowned and her heart twitched with a bit of an ache at the words. She was trying like Hell to be supportive of Nicole but it seemed it wasn’t enough. That hurt because it wasn’t like any of this was easy for her, either.

“She told me she thinks her aunt lied about the fate of her parents” Nicole slowly looked over at Wynonna as if trying to gauge her reaction to that.

“So?” Wynonna just shrugged it off because she couldn’t care less about the girl.

“So what if her aunt is involved somehow? With the coverup of the accident, I mean” Nicole shrugged at the idea because now that she was saying it outloud it did sound kind of ridiculous. “There’s a reason behind the feud between our families, right?”

Wynonna nodded but didn’t interrupt because she wanted to see where this was going.

“What if it has something to do with that night?” Nicole offered up the suggestion again with a little more conviction now that Wynonna hadn’t laughed in her face. “I mean, there were two babies involved that night. There was a traffic accident that killed two people. The man who killed them is now the damn Sheriff of the entire town and is doing a piss poor job at that.” She shrugged again as ideas now started to flow from her lips as soon as they formed in her mind. “There’s something deeper going on here and I think it has more to do with our families than we can imagine.”

“What are you saying?” Wynonna was honestly speechless by what Nicole was saying. It seemed like something out of a movie or a mystery novel. Not that she would ever admit to reading a mystery novel. The point was it sounded way too crazy for the real world.

“I’m saying we need to dig deep and look elsewhere, Wynonna. Someone out there knows the truth and is willing to tell it” Nicole gave a shrug as if the solution were simple. “We just need to find them and ask the right questions.”

~.~.~.~.~.~.


	10. “The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it.”

Nicole had always been a light sleeper. Maybe it was because she had two older sisters who liked to pull pranks on her or maybe it was because half of her childhood was spent listening to her parents fight late at night. Whatever the reason, she was easily stirred. Maybe it was a survival tactic. Either way, the smallest sound could wake her from her sleep and tonight was no different.

At first she thought it was in her dreams, the soft clink of something on glass. It was barely registered by her mind. Then came a second clink a few seconds later and her subconscious was starting to pull her from her slumber. By the time the third clink was heard, Nicole felt the sleep leaving her body completely.

Her eyes shot open when she heard the fourth soft ping and she knew immediately that it was a rock against her window. She blinked once to rid her eyes of the lingering sleep before she sat up and turned her attention to the single pane window that had always been a little too drafty for her liking. Her eyes focused on the glass just as the fifth small pebble bounced off and disappeared back into the night from which it had been flung.

She moved swiftly to the window and pushed aside the sheer covering that hung over the glass. Her eyes fell to the ground and that was when she saw Waverly standing below her. This was quite honestly the last thing she had expected and it showed on her face as she worked to push the window up.

The middle of the night's bone chilling freeze swept into Nicole’s room and she immediately shivered. If she hadn’t been awake before she most definitely was now. But it didn’t deter her from leaning out of the window and calling down in a hiss “Are you crazy? It’s freezing out!”

“You wouldn’t answer your phone!” Waverly called back much more loudly than Nicole had. 

“Will you-” Nicole held her hand out to shush Waverly as she turned back into the house. She listened for a few moments and when it seemed no one had heard she let out a sigh of relief. She looked back at the girl below her window and shook her head “I was asleep.”

Waverly frowned but didn’t give up. She had, after all, snuck out of her house in the middle of the freezing cold night to see Nicole so she would not leave until she did just that. She beckoned Nicole with a few waves of her hand “Can you come down?”

Nicole felt her heart leap in her chest slightly at the request. The events of earlier in the library were far from her mind as she realized the girl of her dreams was standing below her window requesting her presence. It was some Romeo and Juliet type shit and, honestly, Nicole was too weak to say no. She swooned at the thought. She wondered what Waverly wanted. It was the middle of the night and she had sneaked away to see her. Nicole was sure she had seen about a billion romantic movies containing a scene like that. She smiled slightly because it was something she had always imagined but never really thought would happen.

She motioned to Waverly that she would be down in a moment before she closed the window. She hurried around her room to bundle up so she wouldn’t freeze to death before she slowly and carefully started to tip toe out of her room and down the stairs. An advantage to growing up in the same house your entire life was that you knew every inch of the floorboards. You knew which ones would squeak and give you away and which ones were safe to traverse. Nicole made quick work of moving silently down the stairs. She then moved toward the kitchen door that led outside because she knew that one was used less often and thus had less wear and was much quieter when opened and closed.

She had just slipped outside and was rounding the house when she remembered the events that had unfolded at the library earlier in the day. The feeling of floating on cloud nine dissipated in a snap and by the time Waverly came into view she was scowling.

“I tried to text you but you didn’t-”

“Why are you here?” Nicole’s tone was sharp and dripping with the hurt she still felt from what Waverly had shouted for all to hear in the library.

“I-” Waverly frowned when she saw that Nicole was upset. She had anticipated as much but she thought the girl would be at least the tiniest bit happy to see her. “Look, Nicole, I still hate myself for what I said. I am so, so sorry. There is no excuse for it.” She let out a heavy sigh and crossed her arms over her chest as a chill swept through her. “I understand that you’re still upset and I don’t blame you. But I’m here because-”

“A good apology doesn’t include the word but” Nicole grumbled as her scowl deepened.

“I’m sorry” Waverly looked Nicole dead in the eyes. “I hurt you and I will do everything in my power to never do that again. Can you accept that?”

Nicole was warmed by the way Waverly looked at her. She wanted so badly to stay mad but she could see straight into Waverly’s soul and just how deeply she meant her apology. She let out a heavy sigh and nodded “I accept your apology.”

“Good, because I have something to show you” Waverly’s gaze switched from genuine sorrow to serious business in the blink of an eye. “Can we go inside or something?”

“My family-” Nicole stopped and shook the words away because they weren’t her family. Well, Wynonna was but that wasn’t the point. She drew in a deep breath and tried again “They’re asleep.” She had been about to apologize when her eyes fell to the barn behind Waverly and she quickly motioned to it “We can go into the barn. It’s still cold but at least it won’t be windy.”

“That works” Waverly agreed and the two of them turned without another word to head inside.

Before Nicole could even get the huge barn door closed and latched, Waverly was unzipping her coat to reveal the folder she had been holding tucked tightly to her chest. She set it on top of one of the many stacks of hay bales and flipped it open “After what you told me today I couldn’t stop thinking about it. It was just too coincidental, you know? What are the odds that my parents and your parents died the exact same way?” She glanced up to see if Nicole was listening before looking back at the papers she was sorting through “Plus, not having a birth certificate on file really shook me to my core.”

Nicole put aside her complete surprise at everything that Waverly was spreading out over the hay when the girl looked up at her with a deep frown on her face. She could only imagine what was going through Waverly’s mind upon hearing there was no birth certificate on file for her. She let out a sigh and moved closer, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder “I’m sure it’s a mistake or something. Like I said, I hadn’t checked nearby counties yet.”

“No need” Waverly stated firmly as she lifted a paper from the file and offered it to Nicole. “I found my birth certificate.”

“What?” Surprise filled Nicole’s face as she reached for the paper she was being handed. She then looked at the file that was spread out over the hay and shook her head “What is all of this?”

“Important documents, passports, birth certificates…” Waverly motioned boredly to the pile then gave a shrug. “Standard stuff we all have tucked safely away in our homes that prove we are who we say we are. Anyway-” She waved it off and motioned to the paper Nicole now held “-look at my birth certificate.”

Nicole nodded and dropped her eyes to the paper. She hadn’t seen an actual birth certificate before so she took a few moments to read it over. She didn’t exactly know what she was looking for but it became evident very quickly that something was amiss. She shook her head faster and faster the more she read and by the time she was at the end of the document she was stunned. She looked slowly up at Waverly, her mouth agape and her cheeks pale. She blinked just once then stuttered out “Wh-what the Hell?”

Waverly nodded at Nicole’s reaction because she had experienced one very similar. She moved a step closer and put a hand on the other girl’s forearm gently as concern filled her eyes. She stared at Nicole tenderly, trying to offer a semblance of comfort, showing that she was there for her still. Whether she liked it or not, Nicole was now tied to Waverly through this endeavor because it now involved both of them.

“This can’t be right” Nicole’s head shook so quickly she was at risk of pulling a neck muscle. Her eyes lifted and when they settled on Waverly’s calm gaze she felt her stomach knot up so tightly she thought she might be sick. “How-” She swallowed and tried to pull in a calming breath before she spoke again “How are you so calm?”

“I’m freaking out, trust me. I mean, at least I was-” Waverly motioned with her hand toward somewhere else “-earlier, when I found that. But I’ve had a little more time to process and I think that’s why I can be calm right now. I don’t really know, maybe I’m in denial or something and-”

“Waverly!” Nicole blurted out to stop the panic that was now rising in the other girl. It was doing nothing to quell her own panic. She stared wide-eyed at the girl and tried to control her breathing with deep, long pulls of air into her lungs. “Waverly” She spoke again a little more calmly the second time and once it seemed she had her attention, she sighed heavily “How is it possible that my parents’ names are on your birth certificate?”

Waverly just shrugged because she had no answers. She motioned to the paper Nicole held and shook her head “That’s not even my last name so either someone is lying or…” She stopped and gave it a moment of thought before she huffed in frustration and rolled her eyes “No, actually, that’s the only option. Someone is lying.”

“Why?” Nicole blinked and looked at the paper. She read it over for a moment then looked back at Waverly. “How? Who?” She felt herself starting to spiral again “What the Hell is going on?”

“I know” Waverly stepped closer which allowed her to grab hold of both of Nicole’s arms. She gave a soft squeeze to each bicep she held onto and tried to bring Nicole’s focus back to her. She offered a single nod and as much of a calming smile as she could muster. It wasn’t much, but she was trying. If she didn’t try she was worried they’d both spin out of control and lose their minds. “Just take a breath. Let’s sit down and try to figure this out.”

Nicole gave an obedient nod then turned and plopped down heavily onto the hay. She felt numb again. She blinked because she thought she was losing her sight. It helped to focus her and she kept her gaze on Waverly as the girl moved to sit beside her. Honestly, Waverly was the only thing keeping her present and grounded. If she had discovered this alone she might have blown up and done, well, something irrational probably. 

She shook the thought away and drew in a deep breath. She held it for a few seconds then slowly released it. She gave a nod, as if to confirm that it had helped, before looking back at the paper she held. “Okay, let’s think. Why would your aunt have a birth certificate for the baby of the people who were killed by Ward Earp’s drunk driving?”

“I have two theories,” Waverly spoke calmly. She wanted to try and keep the mood nice and relaxed so they could both avoid freaking out again. She reached over and gently put her hand on Nicole’s knee as a way of reminding her to stay calm. “The first theory is that my aunt adopted that baby.” She glanced at Nicole and gave a nod “The second is that those people, the Haughts, were her niece and nephew and she took the baby in when they died.”

Nicole nodded once. Her heart had started racing faster with each word Waverly spoke. All of this was terrible to think about and it was even worse that one of them sitting there on that hay bale was probably that baby. If it wasn’t for Waverly’s hand on her knee, she felt she might have lost it and started crying. Instead, she reached down and grabbed onto the hand. She gave it a tight squeeze and moved her head in another nod “Neither of those theories explain why the baby that was born to the Earps that night doesn’t have a birth certificate on file.”

Waverly’s brows creased together in thought because, well, she hadn’t considered of that. She returned the squeeze of her hand with one of her own as her eyes lifted to look at Nicole next to her. “So we have two babies born that night and only one certificate?”

Nicole nodded. She then looked at the birth certificate she still held in her left hand and read it again. “This has my birthday on it” She glanced at Waverly with a frown “Given the recent discovery that I share no DNA with the Earp family I am willing to bet my life this is mine. The Haughts were my parents and Ward killed them.”

Waverly slid a little closer to Nicole. She shifted so she was no longer holding Nicole’s hand but rather had her arm looped around her back. She leaned into her, partly in an attempt to comfort Nicole about her parents and partly because she needed a little comfort herself. She swallowed the emotions that were welling in her throat and when she spoke it was barely audible “So who am I?”

Nicole glanced down at Waverly when she slid herself against her side. She felt her heart leap into her throat and in that moment all of her own confusion and hurt melted away. She realized that she wasn’t the only one hurting at the moment. This wasn’t just about her. There were other lives involved. One of those lives was someone she cared about very much. Her heart fluttered at the thought as her arm slid around Waverly and she pulled her more tightly against her side. “All I know for sure is you’re the most amazing person I’ve ever met.”

Waverly trembled against Nicole. It wasn’t because she was cold or scared or upset. It was because she could feel how genuine the words had been. She bit her lip to fight off the urge to cry and looked up at the girl who was holding her tight. She waited for Nicole’s eyes to find hers and when they did without hesitation, she managed to produce a sad smile “I don’t deserve to be told such nice things by you after what I said in the library today.”

“You were upset” Nicole whispered, frowning as she spoke because of how truly sad Waverly looked. “Life isn’t easy on the best of days and to find out you’ve been lied to by the people who are supposed to take care of you?” She let out a heavy sigh and shook her head slightly “It sucks.”

“Blows hardcore” Waverly mumbled in agreement as she wiped a rouge tear off her cheek.

“But you have me” Nicole replied quickly as her hand lifted to pull Waverly’s chin up. When their eyes met and she saw the glossy, unshed tears hanging on the edge of the other girl’s eyes, her heart gave a throbbing ache. She would do anything to make the hurt she saw disappear from Waverly’s beautiful face forever. She slid her thumb across her cheek, wiping away another tear before she spoke in a whisper again “We’re in this together until the end, alright?”

Waverly nodded at the words as she straightened up from where she had been leaning into Nicole. Without saying anything more her hand lifted to cup at Nicole’s cheek and she pressed her lips firmly against her mouth. The kiss was tender but there was a sense of desperation behind it. She was desperate to find solace in all of her pain and confusion. She was desperate to feel comfort and stability. She knew that Nicole was the only one that could offer her any of that and as the kiss grew in intensity that very fact solidified by the second.

The kiss had caught Nicole off guard, only briefly. She hadn’t been expecting it but the moment she felt Waverly’s lips on her own she also felt the weight of what it carried. These two were sharing something unique and although it was terrifying and confusing it was also bonding them in an unspeakable way. As she tilted her head and returned the kiss, allowing it to progress and grow and consume them both it left no doubt between them. They needed one another now on more levels than either of them could understand so in that moment they stopped trying to comprehend it all and simply let themselves get lost in something that made sense.

They lost track of time, and reality, as they sat together on the hay tangled in the kiss. It remained relatively chaste, hands resting on hips or backs, with neither of them pushing for more. As the kiss broke, Waverly bit her lip almost shyly and dropped her eyes away from Nicole. She tucked some hair behind her ear and let out a tiny, timid laugh “That was probably really inappropriate.”

“Hey” Nicole reached down and gently tucked her fingers under Waverly’s chin. She lifted it, guiding the girl’s eyes back up to her own. She smiled when their eyes met and gave a single nod “I know there’s a lot going on but any time you want to do that again I can assure you it is not inappropriate.”

Waverly couldn’t help the laugh that came from her lips at the response. She shook her head in amusement as her fingers lifted and she brushed some of Nicole’s sleep messed, wind blown hair behind her ear “The fact that you face everything with optimism and an unwavering sense of humor makes it really hard to resist you.”

“Really?” Nicole’s eyebrows lifted in surprise at the notion.

Waverly gave a few definitive nods as her fingers trickled away from Nicole’s ear and down her cheek “You’ve managed to make me forget how shitty life is, if even for a few moments. That’s an accomplishment.”

Goosebumps lifted on Nicole’s skin along the path that Waverly’s fingers had moved. She fought off the shiver that wanted to overtake her entire body and instead gave a single nod “If there is anything else I can do to help you forget, especially if it involves kissing, just let me know.”

Waverly laughed again. Nicole felt her heart take flight at the sound. She was sure she could die right then and there and feel completely happy because of the simple fact that she got to hear that amazing laugh.

As her laugh died down, Waverly let herself settle into Nicole’s side again. She dropped her eyes to the birth certificate that had been dropped during the kiss. She stared at it on the ground for a few moments before turning her face away. She wrapped both arms around Nicole and buried her face against her shoulder. She drew in a deep breath, letting the subtle scent of the other girl fill her senses. It kind of smelled like vanilla doughnuts. She smiled at that because those were her favorite. She closed her eyes and just enjoyed the embrace.

Nicole wasn’t sure what to do or say next. She was still a little shocked that she was in her barn holding the girl she had been daydreaming about for years. Instead of questioning it, or potentially ruining the mood by speaking, she just slid her arms around Waverly and held her. It was cold outside but she didn’t feel it. All she felt was warm and content and, well, safe.

It was quiet in the barn for a few minutes as the two girls sat holding one another. Both of them with their minds racing in a million different directions. There were more questions than answers. Neither of them really knew who they were or what family they belonged to. It was hard to fight the feeling of despair that was trying to creep in with every passing moment.

Finally, Waverly shifted and pulled away from Nicole just enough to look up at her. When Nicole looked down at her curiously, she sighed very softly as a frown moved over her features “I know I should go home but…” She gave a defeated shrug at the thought and shook her head “...I don’t feel like that place is home anymore.”

“I know the feeling” Nicole whispered, nodding in acknowledgment to the sentiment. She felt like she had been sleeping in a house of lies ever since finding out she wasn’t an Earp. 

“I don’t have anywhere else to go” Waverly’s frown grew and she moved away from Nicole completely. She tucked some hair behind her ear then pulled her arms across herself tightly because the absence of Nicole’s body immediately chilled her to the bone.

Nicole opened her mouth to immediately suggest Waverly stay with her but somehow her sense caught up with her emotions and she stopped herself. She slumped in disappointment because she didn’t have an immediate solution. She took a few moments to think of something, anything, she could do to help Waverly. She hated seeing the girl upset. Just as she was about to give up, something came to her.

“I might have an idea” Nicole perked up a bit and although she tried to smile confidently her lips curled with a bit of uncertainty.

“You don’t seem too sure” Waverly looked Nicole over once and shook her head. “It’s fine, really. I can suck it up and go back to my house.”

“No, no, I think…” Nicole nodded a few times as if silently convincing herself of her plan if for no other reason than to build a sense of confidence about it. “Come on” She got up off the hay and started to gather up the papers that Waverly had spread about. She tucked them sloppily away in the file then held it out to the girl. “You drove here, right?”

Waverly nodded as she took the file but didn’t speak. She was curious about what Nicole had going on in her mind.

“Let’s go” Nicole motioned for her to follow and they made their way quietly toward Waverly’s car. 

Once they were inside with the engine started and the heater blasting, Waverly looked at Nicole curiously “Okay, where am I going?”

“Head into town” Nicole nodded quickly. “I’ll tell you when we get close.”

~.~.~.~.~.~.

“I don’t know about this Nicole” Waverly whispered as she glanced around their surroundings. She pulled her arms more tightly around herself in an attempt to ward off the cold.

“I just…” Nicole trailed off and gave a little shrug before lifting her hand to give a knock against the door they had been standing near for the last minute or so “...I can’t explain it but I have a good feeling about this.”

“I trust you” Waverly said with a nod as her hand reached out and gently touched Nicole’s back in a gesture of that trust.

Nicole glanced over at Waverly with a soft smile, letting her eyes linger on her a moment, before she turned her attention back to what she had been doing before. They stood there in the wind and cold for what felt like forever even though it was just a few seconds. Feeling as though she might have been wrong, Nicole let out a heavy sigh which rose into the night air in a cloud before looking back at Waverly “Okay, maybe this was a bad id-”

The door opened just then. The person inside peeked through the crack for a few seconds before pulling the door open fully. Gus eyed the girls over once, not a single ounce of surprise on her face, and gave a firm nod “I thought I might be seeing you two sooner rather than later.”

“I’m sorry to bother you. I just-”

Gus cut Nicole off as she stepped to the side and motioned for the girls to enter her apartment.

Nicole glanced at Waverly then reached down and took her hand before they stepped inside. The apartment above Shorty’s was barely a living space. The bedroom was its own separate room but the rest of the apartment all blended together. It was obviously a place where someone spent time only to sleep.

Gus closed and bolted the door once the girls were inside. She then moved to the small kitchen and started to fill the kettle with water as she glanced at the teenagers “I assume you’ve discovered a few very troubling things and have come in search of answers.”

Nicole motioned for Waverly to sit on the small couch before she did so herself. She nodded to confirm Gus’ suspicions as she settled “Wynonna told me you’re the one that helped tip her off about, well...” She sighed out and gave a sweep of her hand out to the side to cover wide space around herself “...everything.”

“It’s a right shame what’s been done to you girls” Gus stated as she moved to the end of the kitchen counter and leaned against it to look at the girls better while she waited for the tea kettle to boil.

“What’s been done?” Waverly spoke now, her eyes laser focused on the older woman who seemed to hold the answers she sought. “Please, I need to know who I am and where I come from.”

Gus gave a nod at the plea but turned away again. She moved to her cabinets and fetched three small teacups. She lined them up on the counter top before digging out a box of teabags. As she worked to set a bag in each cup she spoke softly without making eye contact with the other two “I was paid a lot of money by very powerful and corrupt people to keep my mouth shut. They threatened my life, my husband Curtis, and my livelihood” She motioned to her feet to indicate the bar she stood above. “I’d be remiss if I told you it was the right thing to do but at the time I felt I had no other choice.”

Nicole glanced at Waverly with a silent wondering in her eyes about what Gus had gone through and who was responsible for that. She gripped the hand she held more tightly as if to remind her she was still by her side.

“Who?” Waverly spoke again, still quietly, as the tone in the room did not call for much more than that.

“The list of who wasn’t involved might be shorter, dear” Gus stated plainly with a nod as the kettle behind her started to blow. She turned to take it off the heat then slowly and carefully filled each of the cups. As the steam rose from the drinks, she set down the kettle and looked back to the girls on her couch. “The mayor, the entire Purgatory P.D., and the Hospital Board of Administrators make up the majority of those in charge at the time.”

The girls looked at each other, sharing a worried and confused look. The news was, somehow, shocking. Yes, there were still some things and information in the world that could shock them after all they had already learned. Waverly looked away from Nicole, giving her hand a squeeze as she did so, and continued to press for information “What happened?”

“I want you girls to know something” Gus said with a firm nod as she took the cups from the counter and moved slowly toward where they sat on the couch. She handed each girl a drink before moving to sit on her recliner. She sat on the edge of it, holding her cup between both hands, as she set her eyes steely on the other two “I was just minding my own business. This is a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I wish to the Heavens I didn’t know what I know but more so I wish I woulda spoke up sooner, a lot sooner, and done what I could to untangle this mess. The guilt of it has eaten me alive for many years.”

Again the two teenagers shared a look of concern but neither of them spoke this time. Instead their hands tightened around one anothers in anticipation. This was it. They were about to understand what had happened and how their lives had turned into a huge mess of lies and secrets.

“It was twelve years back. Curtis was in the hospital on account of a heart attack. It was late one night, not too many people wandering about, but I heard a lot of whispers going around. I was standing at the coffee machine trying to get a cup when I overheard a couple nurses talking about some sort of mix up.” Gus shook her head and took a sip of tea. “Now I’m not one for gossip but that doesn’t mean I’m immune to it.” She motioned to her feet again to once more indicate the bar they were above and gave a nod “People’s tongues get real lax when they have some whiskey in them.”

Nicole wasn’t sure she was breathing. She was so focused on the story that she had forgotten how to function. Luckily, Waverly gave her hand another squeeze and she was brought back to herself. She drew in a deep breath but did not dare interrupt.

After another sip of tea, Gus cleared her throat and continued “When I heard about the mix up with the babies at the hospital I didn’t think much more about it other than that it was a shame. Then the next night…” She finally pulled her eyes away from the girls and looked down at her drink. She drew in a deep breath like she was bracing herself for what she was about to say “...Ward Earp was in my bar going on and on about how he should sue the hospital. How they should all be fired, stuff of that nature.” She lifted her eyes and glanced at the girls before shrugging “I wouldn’t normally pay that lush no mind but after what I’d heard at the hospital I couldn’t help but bend my ear in that direction.”

“Why?” Waverly spoke suddenly. She had been hanging on every word but now the answers weren’t coming fast enough. She needed to know the truth. “Why sue the hospital?”

Gus was a little surprised to hear Waverly push on. She thought the information would be too much and the girls would want it sugar-coated. She was impressed at how well they were dealing with it all so far. “Turns out the night of the drunk driving accident-” Her eyes shifted to Nicole and that was all the confirmation needed that it was in fact her parents that had been killed that night “-there was a lot of chaos. Purgatory’s emergency department isn’t equipped to deal with three life threatening events all at once. People were scrambling about like chickens with their heads cut clean off. It was a madhouse.”

Waverly’s arm shifted and slid around Nicole’s back, silently comforting her in the wake of the confirmation that it had been her parents killed in the accident that night. 

“They had a man dead on arrival and a birthing mother in critical condition not to mention a drunk man with a head injury shouting about his own wife who was in labor” Gus shook her head at what she had just said. It had been a preventable tragedy.

Nicole took her eyes away from Gus and dropped them to her knees. She felt the tears come out of nowhere and before she could stop them a few dropped from her eyes. Her heart was aching. Her real parents had been victims of murder. Whether it had been intentional or not it did not matter to her. It was murder and now she knew she would never have a chance to know who they were.

Waverly felt the shift in Nicole beside her and turned to look at her. When she saw the tears fall she bit her own lip to fight back the emotions that surged forth. For so long she had thought her parents had died in much the same way so she knew the sort of loss that Nicole felt. She had had many years to deal with it though. It was a fresh wound for Nicole and it broke Waverly’s heart knowing the pain that this amazing girl next to her was feeling. She pulled her arm around Nicole more tightly and leaned into an embrace in an attempt to comfort her “I’m sorry Nicole. I am so, so sorry.”

“It’s a damn shame and the man should have sat in the electric chair already” Gus nodded as she stood and moved to lay a comforting hand on Nicole’s shoulder. “He should have never been allowed another free day in his life let alone been promoted to Sheriff.”

“How was he allowed?” Waverly looked up at Gus standing over them now, her brow creased with disgust. “It’s not fair that he got away with it.”

“The night he was drunk yelling about suing the hospital there was a meeting of those in charge” Gus said with a nod, looking at Waverly now since Nicole’s head was still dipped as tears continued to fall from her eyes. “Word somehow got to the Mayor about the commotion Ward was making and he came down to put a stop to it. Next thing I knew they were demanding I kick everyone out so they could get this thing settled. I didn’t want no part in any of it but Ward wouldn’t leave. He said if he left he was going straight to a lawyer to file a suit. So the men all met here” She motioned to the floor again. “The hospital board and the Mayor and his staff were all here. Even the Sheriff at the time came. They sat and they discussed and they went over details for hours.”

“What did they say?” Waverly had to know now. They were so close to the answers. She wanted the truth if not for herself then for the broken hearted girl who sat sniffling to her right.

“Now I told you I ain’t one for gossip but there isn’t a thing that happens in my bar that I don’t know about” Gus reiterated her statement from before so the girls knew she had not been purposely involved. She would never willingly enter into a mess like this one. “Sound carries light like feathers in the wind through these floorboards and I heard everything.” She moved to crouch in front of the girls now so that she could bring herself to their eye level. She matched eyes with Waverly first before turning to Nicole. 

When she found the red, shining teary eyes of Nicole looking back at her expectantly she felt herself choke. She had dreaded this moment for many years. The truth wasn’t easy but once it was out they could all get on the path toward healing. “Seems in the chaos of that fateful night someone at the hospital made a real mess of things in the maternity ward.” She motioned between the two teenagers sitting on her couch and spoke clearly so there would be no confusion “Got you two mixed up and sent the wrong babies home with the wrong families.”

Both girls looked completely stunned by the news. 

Waverly felt faint. She fluttered her eyes trying with all her might to focus on what she had just heard. The words echoed around in her ears and as they settled into her brain she felt herself go numb. Her fingers tingled and she could no longer feel Nicole’s hand in her own. Her chest tightened. She wasn’t sure she was breathing any more. She was pretty sure she was having a heart attack.

“What?” Nicole somehow managed to produce the word as her hand gripped tightly around Waverly’s as if holding onto the only thing that was keeping her from lifting out of her body and into space.

“Oh, darling, here…” Gus stood and quickly moved to grab onto Waverly’s arm. She helped guide the girl over and laid her softly on the couch so she did not fall forward and onto the floor. Once Waverly was lying safely, she hurried to her sink to get some cold water for her to drink. “Poor thing just about fainted.”

Nicole was suddenly brought back to reality when Gus helped Waverly lie back. She blinked and turned her attention to the girl. She saw then that all of the color had drained from her usually rosy, bright cheeks. Nicole immediately shifted and pulled Waverly’s legs across her lap so she was able to fully lay back “Oh my god, are you alright?”

“She’ll be fine, I reckon. Just had a Hell of a shock move through her. Here” Gus handed the glass of water to Nicole and motioned at Waverly to indicate she wanted her to help her drink it “Go slow so it doesn’t upset her stomach.”

Nicole nodded then extended the cup toward Waverly’s face. That’s when she noticed she was trembling. She focused on the movements of her hand and realized they were only getting worse. The water was sloshing around, threatening to spill all over.

“Good Lord, let me” Gus huffed in amusement and took the glass from Nicole. She crouched near Waverly’s head, slid her hand behind her neck, and offered the water “Here, dear, try and take a sip or two to calm your nerves.”

Waverly blinked and bought the world back into focus. She could see Nicole staring at her with a look like she might puke. She turned her head and saw Gus offering her the water. She shook her head and pushed herself up onto her elbows before taking hold of the glass. She sipped just once and as the cool water slid down her throat it seemed to shock her back into herself. She cleared her throat and focused once more on Gus “Did you just say we were mixed up?”

Gus nodded once without hesitation.

Nicole blinked. Her brows creased together as she processed what it all meant. There was so much information being given to her from so many different sources that she was sure it would take years for her to fully deal with it all. But in that moment she managed to grasp what had been said. She shifted her gaze to Waverly again and nodded as she spoke “I went home with the wrong family. That means I was never meant to be an Earp at all.”

“But I was” Waverly had connected the dots at almost the same time. Her mouth felt dry as she spoke the realization out loud. She stared in horror at Nicole now because she had no idea what else to do. She thought it had been bad enough that her aunt had lied to her about her parents death. The truth was, well, more overwhelmingly horrifying than she could put into words so she just stared at Nicole. As she stared she came to perhaps the most confusing realization of them all: She was looking into the face of the girl that was living the life that had been meant for her. 

~.~.~.~.~.


	11. "Of all the weapons you fight with your silence is the most violent"

“I have to go home. I have to talk to her and I have to hear her side of the story” Waverly had rebounded from her shock and was now pacing the small space that acted as the living room in Gus’ apartment over the bar.

“You’re in no condition to be driving right now” Nicole stood, watching Waverly move back and forth, trying to calm her down.

“I can’t-” Waverly stopped and turned sharply toward Nicole. “I don’t understand any of this. Why lie? How long has she known? Why is my last name Jones?”

“I don’t know” Nicole’s shoulders slumped as her head dropped in shame. She wished she had more answers. She wished she could say something, anything, to calm Waverly down. Somehow she had been remarkably calm herself. Maybe she was still in shock or something but she had managed to focus on Waverly and her feelings instead of letting herself panic. 

“Here’s the deal” Gus spoke now with her hands on her hips and a no nonsense look in her eyes. “My feet are killin’ me, my back is achin’, and I gotta open the bar up in a few hours so I need to call it a night. You two are more than welcome to hunker down here if need be” She motioned to the small couch and the floor of her living room “Maybe things might look a little clearer in the light of day. But I am going to go catch some shut eye.”

Nicole nodded at the older woman and gave her a soft smile “You really don’t have to do that.”

Gus waved off the polite response and moved into her bedroom. Nicole looked back at Waverly and frowned when she saw the girl had started pacing again.

“I’m an Earp and I was born the same night as you-” Waverly threw a hand toward Nicole even though she wasn’t really talking to her “-so where is my birth certificate? If they knew, why didn’t they…” She huffed as her hands swept across each other in front of herself before she looked up at Nicole as if she held the answer “...swap us back?”

“I don’t know” Nicole sighed out again. She really should come up with a better response than those same three words she had repeated to the girl more times in the last half hour than she had in her entire life.

“Here you two go” Gus set a pile of blankets and pillows on the arm of the couch. “Make yourselves at home.”

“Thank you” Nicole acknowledged the woman before turning her attention back to Waverly who was rambling on again.

“I mean, maybe my aunt didn’t know? Maybe she still doesn’t know?” Waverly looked up at Nicole with expectant eyes again “Maybe the Earps have been keeping it from her the entire time and that’s why there’s the weird…” She motioned to herself, then to Nicole, and back again “...tension between our families?”

Nicole just shrugged. She took a step toward Waverly now and managed to catch her shoulders with both hands on one of her turns. She stood in front of her and looked at her as calmly and firmly as she could “I have as many questions as you do and even fewer answers. Maybe we should rest for a few hours. We can go to your house in the morning and see if your aunt will tell us anything.”

“She’s not my aunt” Waverly threw her hands up in defeat then used them to motion emphatically at Nicole “She’s YOUR aunt!”

“Fine, whatever, my aunt” Nicole waved it off because it was way too much to deal with right now. Her head hurt. She felt like she was so stuffed full of information that she might actually explode if she learned one more new tidbit about herself. “We can ask her tomorrow, though.”

Waverly seemed thrown off by Nicole’s indifference. It seemed to snap her out of her panicked ramblings, though. She blinked a few times and as Nicole’s entire being came into focus she realized how exhausted and down trodden the girl looked. This immediately brought a frown to her lips. For a split second her own feelings faded and were replaced with concern for Nicole. Her hand lifted and she brushed a loose strand of bangs away from the other girl’s cheek “You’re absolutely right. We need rest. We need to sleep on it and recharge.”

Nicole was grateful to hear Waverly finally give into her urgings for them to call it a night. It had been quite a night and Nicole wasn’t sure she had the mental and emotional capacity to handle much more. So when Waverly agreed to sleep she let out a relieved sounding sigh. “Yes, sleep. We can go in search of answers tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow, right” Waverly agreed and moved her hand to pat Nicole on the shoulder a few times. When she saw the relief take over her face, she felt herself melt just slightly. She had lost control of herself and her emotions and had forgotten that she was still sixteen and there was still this amazingly sweet girl that she had not been able to stop thinking about recently. Given all that they had learned, her very sudden and new feelings for Nicole were a welcome reprieve. This brought a slight smile to her lips and she motioned to the stack of blankets and pillows on the couch “So this isn’t exactly how I pictured our first sleepover.”

Nicole paused in unfolding one of the blankets and looked up at Waverly. She eyed her curiously for a few seconds before a blush filled her cheeks and she let out a nervous breath of a laugh “You’ve imagined us having sleepovers?”

Waverly bit the inside of her cheek to stop a smile from spreading over her lips as she gave as casual a nod as she could “A time or two.”

“Was this before or after we…” Nicole arched one eyebrow as a smirk took over her features as a way of silently finishing her question.

“Before” Waverly said with a firm nod. She took a step toward Nicole as a sly smile finally moved across her lips “And after.”

Nicole’s eyebrows rose higher on her forehead. She felt her ears heat as the blush from her cheeks spread around her entire head, it seemed. She bit her bottom lip shyly, but managed to keep her eyes on Waverly curiously “And, um, what exactly did you imagine happening during these sleepovers?”

Waverly lifted both shoulders to her ears and held them there for a few seconds as she took another step toward Nicole. She reached out and took hold of the blanket the girl had been unfolding a moment earlier. "The usual girl stuff…." She trailed off to let Nicole come to her own conclusion as she shook out the blanket and spread it over the floor. 

Nicole just stood there looking a little dumbfounded. She had never actually had a sleepover but she had imagined them several times. As she went through puberty and her hormones raged, her imagination had gotten more vivid and, well, Waverly was usually the one she pictured with her during those daydreams. To hear now that Waverly had her own ideas like that sent a surge through Nicole that she had never felt before. She wasn't exactly sure what it was but she was positive she had liked the sensation.

Waverly couldn't help but to giggle at the way Nicole stood there with glossed over eyes and a stunned look on her face. "Earth to Nicole" She snapped near her face with a smirk of amusement on her lips "Did I break you?"

"Sorry" Nicole shook off the images she had been lost in as she was brought back to the moment. She blushed even redder and let out a nervous laugh as she reached for another blanket from the stack.

"I'm teasing" Waverly whispered with another soft giggle as she tossed the pillows onto the floor before turning to help Nicole spread out the second blanket. 

"Right. Of course" Nicole looked a little embarrassed at herself and her raging hormones. She looked down at the blanket in her hands, fidgeting with it slightly. "Totally."

Waverly pouted and stepped forward to close the gap between them completely. She laid one of her hands over Nicole's and smiled gently at her "Hey, relax. It's just me. We make jokes and laugh together, remember? Please tell me that hasn't changed because I really, really need a bit of normalcy to remain intact."

Nicole quickly shook her head as her hand turned over to take hold of Waverly's. She put on a slight smile as her gaze settled tenderly on the shorter girl's "We can totally still joke around. I am just really wiped. I think my brain might actually be fried."

Waverly appreciated how quickly Nicole attempted to reassure her. She liked that about the girl. She was always so keen to put aside her own stuff and attempt to cheer Waverly up. The thought put a smile on her lips as she nodded at Nicole "Mine too. We should totally try and sleep."

"Totally" A genuine smile came to Nicole's lips when it seemed Waverly was not upset. She gave a squeeze of the girl's hand before letting it go and motioning to the floor. That is when she really took notice of the set up. Waverly had made a single bed for them to share. She felt herself blush at the thought but pushed through it with a nod "After you."

Waverly agreed silently with a nod of her own. She turned to the makeshift bed but did not release Nicole's hand. Instead she pulled the girl with her, urging her to follow her lead as she knelt onto the blankets before eventually climbing between them. She released Nicole's hand as she crawled under the blankets and shifted around until she was comfortable. She then waited for Nicole to do the same and as soon as it looked like the girl was comfortable, she reached out and once more took hold of her hand.

Nicole felt her heart dance in her chest when Waverly sought out her hand. She didn't fight it. She gladly took hold and gave a gentle squeeze before allowing their hands to come to rest gently between them on the floor. 

Nothing more was said. As the girls laid together, exhausted on an indescribable level, their minds still reeling from the day, there was a sense of peace that washed over them. Somehow the feeling of their fingers laced together seemed to offer the comfort they both needed in that moment to help them believe that maybe everything would be alright.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

Neither of the girls slept all that well but that didn’t stop them from getting up fairly early in the morning. Gus had already gone down to open Shorty’s but left a note tell them to come get some coffee before they left. After folding up the blankets and stacking them neatly with the pillows, they agreed on a plan of action for the day, then headed downstairs.

The interaction with Gus was brief. She asked how they slept, how they were feeling, then wished them luck. The girls thanked her for her hospitality, took two cups of coffee to go, then headed out the back door of the bar toward where Waverly had parked her car the night before.

They were only a few feet out the back door when Nicole stopped in her tracks. Her eyes went wide and she stammered out in surprise “Wy-wynonna? What are you doing here?”

“I should ask you the same thing” Wynonna pushed off where she had been leaning against her truck and motioned to Waverly standing next to Nicole “With the enemy, no less.”

Waverly rolled her eyes but pushed away her annoyance because she knew the truth about who she was now and whether she liked it or not she was related to the smartass who hated her. She put on a forced smile and gave a nod “Good morning, Wynonna. Would you like some coffee?” She lifted the cup she held out toward her with a nod.

“Pfft, I don’t share with strangers” Wynonna spat to the side as if the thought had left a bad taste in her mouth “Or snitches.”

“How did you find me?” Nicole butted in with an exasperated sigh.

“Wasn’t that hard” Wynonna huffed as if she were offended Nicole was questioning her skills. “When I woke up I went to find you to see what the plan for the day was. When I saw you weren’t in bed I called you but that was a bust because-”

Nicole started to frantically pat her pockets in her search of her phone and realized that in her haste to get out of the house the night before she had left it behind.

“Rookie mistake” Wynonna tossed the phone at Nicole. “I read your last text and saw that it was from the snitch-” She motioned to Waverly with a scowl “-It didn’t take a genius to figure out where you were after that.” She shifted where she stood and motioned to Waverly’s car now “Much to my surprise that piece of junk wasn’t parked at her house so the next logical step was to come into town because, well…” She gestured up and around where they stood and gave a nod “There aren’t a lot of places to hide in this shit hole known as Purgatory.”

“Fine” Nicole waved her hand across herself in a gesture of showing she no longer cared about the answer to her question. “What do you want?”

“I want to know why you are sneaking out in the middle of the night to be with her” Wynonna threw her hand toward Waverly before letting it fall with a slap against her thigh. “I should be proud that you are finally rebelling and sneaking out but I’m actually appalled by your life choices right now.”

“Wynonna, I swear to god I have absolutely no patience for your bullshit right now” Nicole snapped, growling as she narrowed her eyes in a scowl. “Not everything revolves around you.”

Waverly’s eyes widened at the surprise reaction.

Wynonna looked stunned for about three seconds before her face twisted from surprise to intrigue. She perked an eyebrow slightly and set her hands on her hips as she eyed her sister over slowly. After a moment she seemed satisfied by what she saw and she nodded at that before bringing her eyes back up to meet Nicole’s angry glare “I’m gonna let that slide because I’m assuming you’re still in your head about everything you’ve learned about your parentage and what not but this is a one time pass.”

“I don’t care if you’re pissed, okay!” Nicole threw the hand not holding her coffee up in frustration. “Wynonna, there is so much going on right now that dealing with your fragile ego is the least of my worries.”

Wynonna gasped now. Nicole had actually managed to offend her.

“How about” Waverly jumped in calmly, putting a hand up toward both girls to quell the eruption she felt was about to blow. “We all take a deep breath, okay?” She gave a nod to both girls then turned and looked at Nicole “How about we fill her in?”

Nicole blinked away her annoyance when Waverly set her eyes on her. She focused on her for a moment and after she processed what had been said, she just nodded. “Uh, are you sure?”

“Fill me in on what?” Wynonna, not one to ever be subtle, stepped forward and inserted herself in the conversation. “What’s going on?”

Nicole turned and looked at her sister now with a sigh. Wait, Waverly’s sister. She shook the thought off and quickly refocused “It’s a long story, Wynonna.”

“Well…” Wynonna huffed and shrugged as if to say that didn’t matter. She reached out and took Nicole’s coffee from her without asking and took a sip. She then gestured with the cup and shrugged again in a way of saying she was listening “Start yapping, Patch.”

“Patch?” Waverly’s eyebrow lifted curiously on her forehead as she looked at Nicole in questioning.

Nicole tried to shake off the inquiry like it was no big deal but her blush gave her away.

“None of your business” Wynonna snorted at Waverly before looping her arm through Nicole’s. She gave a pull and started to lead her away “You can tell me all about it on the way home.”

“No” Nicole pulled her arm away from Wynonna and stopped in her tracks. When her sister looked back at her in confusion, she shook her head “No, we aren’t going home. We are going to-” She turned back and gestured toward where Waverly stood before looking back at Wynonna “-her place. We need to talk to her aunt.”

“What the Hell, Nicole” Wynonna hissed as she hurried over to her, closing the gap between them so when she spoke next she could do so in a whisper. “Why are you involving her? I thought we were a team?”

“We are” Nicole frowned because Wynonna looked genuinely hurt. She let out a heavy sigh and put a hand on her sister’s shoulder. “Like I said, I will tell you what we learned on the way there but, trust me…” She glanced at Waverly for a moment before looking back to her sister “...she is just as much a part of this as I am.”

Wynonna put aside her annoyance at the involvement of Waverly because she was growing more and more intrigued by the moment. She had no idea how in the world Waverly could be involved but she trusted Nicole wasn’t lying to her so she would not argue about it. Yet. She couldn’t make any promises if she didn’t like what she heard but for now she would go along with it all.

“Fine” She finally said before stepping back from Nicole. She glanced at Waverly, scowled at her, then softened her face as her eyes fell back to Nicole. “Fine, let’s go. But I’m driving.”

“In that death trap?” Waverly quickly closed the space between the other two and herself now, shaking her head as she did. “No way. My car is safer. Besides-” She motioned to Wynonna and gave a shrug “What do you think my aunt will say when she sees your truck pulling up?”

Wynonna fought the urge to curl her lip up in disgust at the girl and let out a heavy breath through her nose. “Tattle tale is probably right. But no shitty music on the radio.”

“I’m going to be talking the entire time” Nicole huffed and reached out to nudge Wynonna toward Waverly’s car before another argument broke out between them.

“Fine” Wynonna grunted and followed Nicole’s urging toward Waverly’s car. She was not happy about it but she was trusting Nicole and that meant doing stuff she didn’t want to do. She knew it meant a lot to her little sister so she would bite her lip, as much as Wynonna Earp ever bit her lip, and go along with it. For now. She was sure her patience would wear out soon but for now she would try her hardest to do something selfless for the one person she loved most in the world. Blood or not, Nicole was the only person who mattered to her and she wanted to make sure she never doubted it for a second.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

“Hold on, shut up, wait a second” Wynonna stared at Nicole blankly, her hand held up to indicate she wanted the girl to stop talking. She blinked a few times before squinting her eyes as she processed the information. She took a few seconds to think it all over and after a moment her hand turned from a stop sign shape to pointing at Nicole as a smirk moved over her features slowly “So you’re telling me your last name is Haught and you have red hair?” She spat a laugh through her lips and shook her head in pure amusement “Fucking classic.”

“Wynonna, I swear” Nicole rolled her eyes in complete annoyance. She didn’t know what she expected, honestly. It was Wynonna, afterall, and there was only a certain amount of serious shit the girl could handle before she started to hide behind her sarcasm and jokes. She let out a heavy sigh at that and then looked at Waverly “She’s your problem now, I guess.”

Waverly gasped slightly then glanced at Wynonna in her back seat. She breathed out heavily through her nose and shook her head because there was nothing she could do about it. Genetically, Wynonna Earp was her sister and she would just have to deal with that now.

“Wait, what?” Wynonna’s laughter at her own shenanigans suddenly stopped. She straightened up and looked at Nicole with horror in her eyes. “Shut up, what did you just say?”

Nicole seemed a little surprised at the sudden turn in mood from Wynonna. She arched an eyebrow and eyed her curiously before she motioned to Waverly sitting in the driver’s seat “You mean what I said about you being her problem now?”

Wynonna nodded her head rapidly, almost urgently, as her eyes widened at the words again. She was pointing at Waverly but looking at Nicole. Her eyes seemed almost pleading for the girl to tell her it was all a joke “Why would you say something so mean?”

Waverly had definitely had enough of Wynonna berating her. She turned around in her seat and set her eyes in a scowl “You’re just going to have to get over the fact that we’re family, Wynonna. You don’t have to like me but you are going to have to deal with me going forward so just…” She huffed and motioned with a flick of her hand at the older girl “Buck up.”

“Excuse me, the saying is Earp Up” Wynonna huffed, turning her attention to Waverly now. Her eyes narrowed into another squint as she looked the girl over. It was as if she were evaluating the girl before she finally softened her face into a mild frown “I’m not sure I like your sass but I admire your balls so, for now, I’ll let it slide.”

“Whatever” Waverly rolled her eyes and turned forward in her seat. They had been parked outside her childhood home for the last few minutes while Nicole finished recounting the details of what they had learned the night before. Now that everyone was on the same page, she glanced at Nicole curiously and gave a nod toward the house “Should we get this over with?”

“Wait, we’re going in now?” Wynonna sat up from the back seat and put her head between the headrests of the front seats. She looked between Nicole and Waverly a few times before shaking her head “You have to let me process this for a few minutes before I try and cram more information in!”

“Wynonna” Nicole gave an exasperated sigh and set her with a very impatient look. “I know it’s a lot to take in but we’re kind of on a time crunch here. We need to catch her-” Nicole motioned to the house “-while she’s at home. Waverly says she’s a busy woman.”

“Plus” Waverly gave a nod and tried to smile at her newfound sister “We need to find out the truth before word gets out that we know and people start scrambling to cover it up again.”

“Shut up,” Wynonna put a hand up in Waverly’s face. She then looked at Nicole and sighed in defeat “Fine, you’re right. I will just stand in the back of the room and force Algebra from my brain in order to make room for more.” She shrugged then dropped her hand out of Waverly’s face “It’s not like I’m gonna be using math in my life, ever.”

“Are you always this rude?” Waverly growled at Wynonna before turning and hurrying from her car in a huff. 

“Can you stop?” Nicole hissed at Wynonna before getting out of the car as well. She hurried over to Waverly, who was waiting impatiently on her front step, and gave an apologetic frown “I know she’s obnoxious but it’s just the way she copes with stuff.”

“I’ll get over it. I have to” Waverly sighed as her hand swept across herself as if she were brushing her annoyance away. “At least now I have a sister to annoy me, right?”

Nicole gave Waverly a crooked smile and nodded just once “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

“Speaking of rude” Wynonna caught up to the girls with a huff. “Leaving me behind was kind of a dick move.”

“Just shut up” Waverly rolled her eyes at her before drawing in a deep breath. She looked between the two girls and gave a serious nod. When she spoke it was done softly but firmly to ensure they understood what she was saying “My aunt-”

“Her aunt” Wynonna interrupted to point at Nicole.

Nicole slapped the hand pointing at her away.

Waverly scowled but continued “-Will not be very thrilled about having two Earps in her house without me asking permission first so just try to be polite” Her eyes settled on Wynonna when she spoke the word polite. “No smartass remarks or sarcasm, please?”

“Me?” Wynonna motioned to herself and gasped. She stared with her mouth open for a few moments before she let out a sigh and laughed very softly at the scowls coming from the other two “Fine, I’ll be on my best behavior.”

“No, be on better behavior than that” Nicole gave her a warning point before looking back to Waverly with a nod. “I’ll let you do the talking.”

“Probably a good idea” Wavelrly agreed with a nod. She then looked between the other two once more. She drew in a deep breath as if to steel her nerves then turned toward the door “Alright, here goes nothing.”

She pushed open her front door and led the other two inside. She listened for a few moments and when she realized she could hear the woman she knew as her aunt in the kitchen she drew in another deep breath. She set the keys to her car on the hook near the door then called out “I’m home. Sorry I wasn’t here this morning, I had to run out and do something.”

“Finally!” The woman called from the kitchen. “You had me worried. You know you’re supposed to leave a note or text me.”

“I know” Waverly nodded then rounded the corner into the kitchen. She was greeted by the sight of the woman who had raised her wearing an apron and standing in front of the oven. Her heart twitched in pain. She could not believe this amazing person who had taken her in as a baby could be the same person willing to lie to her for the entirety of her life. She sighed out at that then motioned behind her “Uh, I brought a couple people-”

The woman paused in wiping her hands on a towel when her eyes fell on the unexpected visitors. The smile that Waverly’s presence had brought to her face faded slowly and was replaced by a scowl. She set her hands on her hips as her eyes shifted to look at Waverly sternly “You know they aren’t welcome in my home.”

“I know but I think you’re gonna wanna hear why they’re here” Waverly pushed aside feeling bad about upsetting the woman who had raised her and replaced it with determination to get the truth. She was letting the hurt and confusion about what she had learned drive her forward toward the information they sought.

The woman barely flinched at the firm tone from Waverly. She gave a single shake of her head and moved to cross her arms over her chest “I think you should tell your guests to go home so we can discuss the rules of this house-”

“You need to sit down” Waverly cut the woman off. She was starting to feel annoyance creep in and was using it as fuel to keep her focused on the task at hand. She turned and looked at Nicole and Wynonna then motioned to the little peninsula in the kitchen that had bar stools tucked tightly against it “You two have a seat. Do you want something to drink?”

“No thanks,” Nicole whispered.

“Whiskey would be nice” Wynonna quipped at the same time.

Nicole threw a sharp elbow into Wynonna’s ribs and scowled at her before pulling out her stool.

“That seems appropriate,” Waverly’s aunt snarled under her breath at Wynonna’s joke.

“Wanna say that a little louder?” Wynonna put both hands on the countertop of the peninsula and leaned toward the woman even though she was standing all the way across the room.

“Wynonna, stop” Nicole pulled at her arm trying to get the girl to sit down.

“Considering who your father is, I-”

“Stop!” Waverly shouted, stepping in the eye line of Wynonna and the older woman. She put a hand out in both directions and held them there. She turned her focus to the woman who had raised her “You don’t get to pass judgment on her, her father, or that entire family any more.”

“Young lady you’d better check your tone and how you are speaking to me” The woman once more set her hands on her hips.

“Stop okay? Just stop” Waverly dropped her hands and turned to fully face her aunt now. She shook her head as a sense of sadness washed over her face. “Stop lying. Stop pretending you’re any better than the Earp family. It’s insulting.”

“You don’t know anything about-”

“I know everything!” Waverly shouted again. The lack of sleep was mixing with her hurt from finding out the truth and she was at her breaking point now.

The older woman’s stiff stance slumped a bit in surprise. She blinked once as she looked Waverly over as if trying to decipher what she had meant. She tilted her head to the side slightly and spoke in a very calm tone “Please, lower your voice and try that again.”

“I know everything” Waverly repeated without shouting but in just as stern of a tone. She folded her arms across herself and narrowed her eyes on the woman in front of her. “I am going to ask you some questions and I only want the truth from you.”

“Honey, you know I’d never lie to you” The woman seemed hurt by the girl’s accusations.

“I used to think that was true” Waverly huffed as her arms uncrossed and she stepped to the side. She motioned to where Wynonna and Nicole sat watching the exchange but kept her eyes on the woman who had raised her “You’ve been lying to me my entire life.”

“What do you-?” The woman stopped herself and looked at the two visitors sitting at her kitchen countertop. Her eyes landed on Nicole and her bright red hair and she felt her throat close slightly. Her heart flipped in her chest and after a moment she nodded and looked back at the little girl who she had raised with a sigh of surrender “Okay, what do you want to know?”

Wynonna looked surprised and she looked at Nicole with an arched eyebrow in silent questioning as to whether or not she was ready to hear the truth. When she saw that her sister looked a little paler than usual, she reached out and took hold of her hand tightly. All joking aside, this conversation was going to change the rest of their lives.

“So it’s true?” Waverly had seen the way her not-aunt’s face had softened when she looked at Nicole. She had to bite her lower lip to fight off a swell of emotions. This was real and it was happening. She had kind of hoped she had been dreaming before because she wasn’t really sure she could deal with the reality of it all.

The woman nodded at Waverly but lifted her eyes to Nicole. She took a timid step toward the girl and spoke to the room without removing her gaze from the teenager that looked exactly like her sister had at that age “Yes.” She only managed the one word before she felt herself starting to choke on an unexpected swell of tears.

Nicole closed her eyes and drew in a breath to try and calm herself down. She was trembling. Every new piece of information about her past that was confirmed still somehow seemed to surprise her. Maybe she was in denial and she wouldn’t really grasp it until it was confirmed multiple times by multiple people.

Wynonna slid her arm around Nicole without a second thought. She frowned at the pain she saw on her little sister’s face. Her own heart twitched with an ache, which was weird because she didn’t really think she had a heart. She sighed sadly and decided she was done being quiet. She hated when people danced around the point of a conversation and she was ready to get this over with so they could deal with what came next “All due respect but why the Hell wouldn’t you switch the babies back once you found out?”

Surprisingly, Wynonna speaking did not get an angry response from the older woman. She turned her eyes in the direction of the speaker and when she spoke it was softly with a slight quake in her voice “Because by then they were already four years old” She motioned to Waverly, giving her a loving smile before nodding “She was my child, you know? I’d raised her since day one. I loved her with all my heart. I couldn’t imagine giving her up.”

Waverly wrapped her arms around herself tightly in an attempt to comfort herself. She felt betrayed but at the same time felt sympathy. She hadn’t stopped to think about how hard it must have been to be the adults in this situation. She wasn’t sure how she would have reacted if faced with the same mix up.

“Didn’t you wonder about me?” Nicole croaked out through a bubble of emotion in her throat.

“Every day of my life” The woman spoke tenderly now. She moved slowly over to Waverly, frowning at how upset she seemed. She pulled her into a tight embrace as her eyes lifted to Nicole. “You have to know that this was a no win situation for me.” She dropped her eyes to the girl in her arms and let out a sad sigh as she slowly stroked a hand over her hair “I lost my sister, my best friend, that night. Luckily, I was blessed to be able to carry on her spirit through her child. It didn’t heal the wound but it helped ease the pain.” 

She stepped back just slightly, her hands moving now to cup at Waverly’s cheeks. She used her hands to tilt the girl’s eyes up and when she caught them she felt herself choking up again as she spoke “You helped me be able to move forward in the darkest part of my life and I will never be able to express how much that has meant to me. So..” She closed her eyes and leaned in to press a kiss to Waverly’s forehead, finally allowing a few tears to slide from her eyes, before she pulled back and looked down at her again “...imagine how hard it was for me to hear that this amazing child I had been raising for four years wasn’t actually my sister’s. It nearly killed me.”

Waverly was lost in a fit of sobs. She was having a hard time standing and she leaned into her not-aunt for support, hoping the woman would hold her upright. She hurt so badly, from head to toe, inside and out. Every part of her ached. Physically, mentally, and emotionally there was not an ounce of her being that wasn’t in pain.

Wynonna had shifted to stand midway through the older woman’s speech. She shifted to pull Nicole into herself completely. The girl had lost herself to her own tears very shortly into the story and Wynonna wasn’t going to let her feel unwanted or alone for a split second. So she stood and wrapped her arms around her younger sister and held her tightly as she cried. She felt herself starting to tear up as a side effect of Nicole crying. She hated knowing the girl was in pain and it was growing to be too much to ignore. She managed not to cry, though. It was a good thing she had come with because it looked like she was the only one managing to keep her shit together “Were you ever going to tell them?”

“Of course” The woman cleared her throat and looked back to Wynonna with a nod. “I was going to tell Waverly when the time was right.”

“Who are you to decide when the time is right!” Wynonna’s anger was starting to mount as her emotions became too much to bear. “And what about Nicole?” She motioned to the girl she was holding and shook her head “Were you ever going to let her in on the secret or were you going to just let my dad treat her like shit for the rest of her life? She doesn’t deserve that!” The last of her shouts came out mixed with sobs. She couldn’t do this anymore. Nicole was amazing. She was everything Wynonna wasn’t and it had been bad enough watching her dad mistreat her for no reason. But this? This was her breaking point. Nicole did not deserve to hurt like she was and Wynonna was done letting it happen.

“Please, calm down” The older woman spoke as patiently as she could. She knew this was hard to hear so she was trying not to get mad at Wynonna for shouting at her.

“Wynonna, please, just stop” Nicole cried out, wiping her eyes as she sat up out of the embrace and shook her head “It’s okay. It wasn’t her fault.”

“No” Wynonna hissed as a tear streaked down her cheek. She focused on the girl she had grown up with as her sister and shook her head. “No, Patch, it’s not okay. None of this is okay, don’t you get that? Your entire life has been a lie” She motioned to Waverly with a swing of her hand in that direction “Her entire life has been a lie. I mean, she’s my fucking-” She choked on the word sister because it didn’t seem right. Nicole was her sister, damn it, not this stranger. At the same time, though, she felt a kinship with Waverly now that she knew the truth and she was having a really hard time coping with all the new and confusing emotions she was feeling about it.

“What would you have done?” The aunt asked softly, not accusingly, as she wiped away a tear.

Wynonna just shrugged both shoulders sharply and wiped away a tear of her own. She set her jaw angrily before she spoke “Something different. I wouldn’t have lied to someone I claim to love, that’s for sure.”

“It wasn’t done maliciously. You have to understand that” She looked at Waverly now as she spoke. She gave a nod when the teenager looked at her “I would never have lied about something like this just to hurt someone.” She looked across the kitchen to where Nicole sat trying to catch her breath and wipe her eyes dry. She felt her heart break again slightly “It hasn’t been easy carrying on knowing that a piece of my own flesh and blood is just out of arm's reach from me.”

“Full offense” Wynonna growled as she wiped the last tear from her eye “But I don’t give two shits about your feelings. What about them?” She motioned to Nicole, then Waverly, then Nicole again. “You made decisions about two lives that you didn’t have to live. How is that fair?”

“Wynonna, stop” Nicole cleared her throat and grabbed hold of the older girl’s arm to try and get her to sit back down again.

“No” Wynonna pulled her arm away and set a sad frown on her lips. “This is fucked up, Patch. Don’t you get that? Now she’s crying and asking us to feel bad for her just because she got caught? Hell no.”

“She’s right” The older woman nodded as she looked down at Waverly. She wiped the younger girl’s cheeks dry and when she spoke it was full of the same love and adoration as always “Do you need something to drink, sweetie?”

Waverly shook her head and cleared her throat “I’m okay, thanks.” She stepped away from the woman now that she seemed to have regained control of herself. She wiped the back of hand under her nose and motioned to Wynonna “Why have you been so cruel to that family if you knew Nicole was your niece?” 

“I haven't been cruel” The woman stated with a creased brow forming on her head. “I’ve tried to mind my own business and leave them alone, that’s all.”

“You told me you didn’t want me to associate with them” Waverly huffed weakly as if she couldn’t believe the woman was lying right now.

The woman opened her mouth to defend herself but stopped. She hadn’t been actively cruel, it was true, but she had definitely done all she could to encourage Waverly to stay away from them and in doing so she might have said unkind things. She frowned at herself and nodded in the direction of Wynonna and Nicole “Anything bad I’ve said toward your family has never been directed toward either of you. I am not a perfect woman and I have let the hurt caused by Ward Earp affect my attitude toward the entire family and for that I apologize.”

Wynonna rolled her eyes and waved her hand dismissively to the side. It was pretty shitty how she had willingly talked bad about the family raising her niece but she also knew her father was an ass bag who deserved to be hated. She sighed at that then motioned to Nicole “Why not reach out and try to get to know her?”

“Your father wouldn’t let me” The way the woman answered so quickly left no room to doubt she was being truthful. “I also signed a Non-Disclosure Agreement that states if I spoke up about what had happened I could be sued.”

“By who?” Waverly looked appalled by the news.

“The City of Purgatory” The woman nodded “They have powerful attorneys and all the funding they needed to fight any case brought against them. I was basically handcuffed.”

“Why?” Nicole spoke now.

“It was the hospital’s fault and the hospital is run and funded by the city. If I sued the hospital or tried to file a case they would deny it. Then I ran the risk of losing my child…” She glanced at Waverly and gave her a loving smile. She then looked up at Nicole and let out a sad sigh “There were a lot of powerful people involved in this cover-up and I didn’t have the resources to fight it.”

“So they just threatened you to shut you up? They didn’t care what you thought?” Nicole frowned at the idea because it sounded terribly unfair.

“We settled quietly,” The woman said with a nod. She looked around the room at the three teenagers listening intently and spoke clearly to ensure there was no confusion about what had happened. “There was mediation between myself, the Earps, and the city. We discussed all our options and came to a decision that best suited everyone’s interests.” She put her arm around Waverly now gently “We kept the child we were given at birth and continued to raise them as our own. Neither of us sued the city or hospital. Both families were given a settlement as compensation for the mix up. We signed the NDA and agreed not to reach out to the other child until after the age of eighteen or…” She motioned to their current scenario in her kitchen and nodded “...until the day one of you started asking questions.”

Wynonna reached for Nicole’s hand and gave it a tight squeeze. She then slowly looked over at Waverly. The girl had red, puffy eyes and was still sniffling as she tried to calm herself down from sobbing. Wynonna felt something in that moment that she had only ever felt toward Nicole: The urge to protect her. This sensation caused a lump to form in her throat and she slowly took a few steps toward her. She kept one hand in Nicole’s and after drawing close enough to Waverly she held her hand out toward her. 

Nicole almost asked where Wynonna was going when she felt her move but had stopped when she saw her reach out to Waverly. This gesture brought another wave of tears to her eyes. She stood and moved with her sister without hesitation now. She drew even with Wynonna, casting her a sideways glance and a nod.

Waverly looked surprised at Wynonna’s extended hand. She wasn’t sure what was going on until she saw Nicole move up beside her to support the gesture. She knew at that moment that this was Wynonna’s way of telling her she had her back. As her eyes welled with fresh tears, she moved her blurry gaze to meet Wynonna’s, giving her a nod as she reached out and took the offered hand.

Wynonna’s lips twitched into a smile as a tear moved down her cheek. She pulled at Waverly’s hand until the girl was close enough to wrap her arm around her. At the same time, she slid her arm around Nicole’s waist and pulled both girls in against her body. It was in the middle of that embrace that she decided she would do whatever it took to protect both of her sisters. They’d been through enough already. It was her turn to step up and do what a big sister should.

“What do we do now?” Nicole whispered as she moved to slide her arm around Waverly, now fully closing the small circle they stood huddled in.

“Do the only thing I know how to do” Wynonna mumbled, looking to her left to catch Nicole’s eyes. She smirked slightly and gave a definitive nod “Kick ass and take names.”

~.~.~.~.~.~.


	12. “Sisters function as safety nets in a chaotic world simply by being there for each other.”

“So about that back there?” Wynonna motioned to the house they stood outside of now before sighing and looking at Waverly with her lips twisted in an awkward grimace “I am usually not that emotional or touchy-feely or anything like that. I was just really fucking pissed and, like, I get super protective of Nicole and, well…” She rolled her eyes at herself because she had no idea what she was doing. Why in the world did she feel like she had to explain herself to Waverly all of the sudden?

Waverly let out a very soft laugh and nodded at the words. She had never anticipated she would see a side of Wynonna that was anything less than sarcastic and mean. But, then again, she could have never anticipated hearing she was switched at birth and had been lied to her entire life. She shrugged off Wynonna’s weird apology for being nice to her and offered her a smile “We were all a little emotional. It doesn’t make you weak and, trust me, it doesn’t make me think any less of you.”

“Good,” Wynonna said firmly with a nod as if putting a period at the end of this painfully awkward exchange. She looked back at the house now and after a moment of thought she glanced at Waverly “Is she a good person? I mean, lies and deceit aside, did she treat you right?”

“She’s the best” Waverly answered with an airy happiness in her tone. “She’s attentive and supportive. She is always encouraging my dreams, whatever they might be at the time. If I wanted to try something new she was more than happy to cheer me on through it.”

Wynonna snorted at that. It wasn’t because she didn’t like what she heard but, rather, because it sounded nice and she wished her parents offered half as much support as the woman who had raised Waverly. She shook her head at the thought and glanced at her new little sister again “Yeah, Ward and Michelle are dumpster fires on their best days of parenting so don’t expect a lot from them.”

Waverly just shook her head at the notion. She didn’t expect anything from the Earps. As far as she was concerned she had an amazing parental figure in her Aunt Sheila and she had no intention of replacing her with her biological parents. She didn’t need the Earps to raise her or support her or anything. She had no interest in that at all. “No offense, Wynonna, but I don’t need more parents.”

“I get it” Wynonna waved the statement off to show that it hadn’t offended her at all. “They suck. Besides, I can’t even imagine thinking my parents were my parents for my entire life and then suddenly learning I have an entirely different set of parents. It’s all just…” She sighed out as she thought about the entire situation. Her head shook in disgust as she glanced at Waverly “...really fucked up.”

“The situation is balls” Waverly concurred with a nod.

“Balls?” Wynonna lifted a questioning brow and glanced at Waverly again. After a moment, her head shook and she let out a snort “I need to teach you how to cuss.”

“I know how to cuss” Waverly grumbled, rolling her eyes slightly because she still was not used to Wynonna as a whole. She had a lot of attitude, a lot of sass, and liked things done her way. Waverly had a feeling they were going to butt heads a lot before they managed to reach some sort of middle ground of peace.

“Well, ‘balls’ says otherwise” Wynonna had used finger quotes around the word balls before dropping her hands to her sides. She smirked in amusement because, honestly, it kind of reminded her of something Nicole would say. Her sweet innocent little not-sister never cussed or raised her voice unless she was really upset. She would never admit it but she had always admired that about Nicole.

Waverly had opened her mouth to lecture Wynonna but stopped when the front door of her childhood home opened and Nicole stepped out. She watched the girl come down off the porch and approach herself and Wynonna slowly. Once she was close enough, she moved over to her and put a hand on her arm “Are you okay?”

“Yeah” Nicole gave a nod, casting a soft smile at Waverly before her focus shifted to Wynonna. “I wanted to say thank you for being here for this. I don’t think I could have handled that without you.”

Wynonna waved it off with a huff and moved up beside Nicole. She slid her arm around her shoulders and gave her a little shake “It’s what big sisters do.”

Nicole was relieved to hear that Wynonna still considered her a sister. She wouldn’t cry about it though so she just nodded and wrapped her arm around Wynonna’s waist, returning the weird sideways embrace with a little squeeze. She then looked at Waverly and offered her another smile “Are you alright?”

“Kind of” Waverly breathed out the words as her shoulders flinched into a shrug. “I don't really know where we go from here.”

Nicole nodded because she understood that feeling perfectly. 

“What did you two talk about?” Wynonna asked as she stepped away from Nicole and motioned to the house behind them. “Are you moving in here now or what?”

“What?” Nicole looked appalled by the question. “Why would I do that? I barely know her. Plus…” She motioned to Waverly, then Wynonna, then back to the house and just gave a sort of flustered shake of her head because she didn’t know what else to say. This was a twisted mess and there were no easy solutions. “I mean, Waverly isn’t moving into the Homestead so why would I move in here?”

“Oh yeah, totally not moving out there” Waverly batted the idea away as if it were a bug.

“Why not?” Wynonna looked offended that she had dismissed the notion so effortlessly.

“Because this is my home” Waverly motioned to the house. “I’m not just going to pick up and move because I know who my biological parents are! They didn’t raise me. Besides, you said they suck as parents anyway. What makes you think I heard you say that and thought to myself, yeah I should totally move into that house.” She rolled her eyes at that “That’s a terrible idea.”

“So you just expect Nicole to keep living there?” Wynonna huffed out in anger now. “She has a chance to get to know her real family. Don’t be selfish and-”

“Okay, stop!” Nicole stepped between the other two to separate them. She looked back and forth between the two of them before letting her eyes land firmly on Wynonna. “Nothing has been settled, okay? I mean, the Earps don’t even know that we know. Besides, I don’t want to leave you” She frowned at the thought as sadness filled her eyes “You’re my family, Wynonna. I’m not going to leave you just because I know where my blood comes from.”

There was something behind Wynonna’s eyes that told Nicole she had needed to hear her say those words. She didn’t want to admit that she had been afraid that she would lose her once she found her real family. Hearing that Nicole still considered her to be family filled her with a sense of relief she hadn’t realized she needed to feel. 

She pushed the feeling aside, though, because she was done with feelings for the day and just nodded at the girl “Fine, no one is moving. So what now?”

“Well, I’d like to get to know my aunt” Nicole nodded and stepped away from Wynonna now that she had calmed her down. She looked over at Waverly and gave her a little smile “I’m sure you want to get to know Wynonna, at least? You two are sisters afterall.”

“I have always wanted a sister” Waverly agreed with a smile on her lips. Her eyes settled on Wynonna and she felt her heart flutter a bit. It was weird how quickly the tension between the two of them could melt away now that she knew the truth. She didn’t harbor any ill-will toward her older sister now. Instead she yearned to get to know her for who she truly is.

Wynonna tried to be annoyed by Waverly being so nice but she found it really hard. That part of her that was a proud Earp had kicked into overdrive and she was secretly intrigued about her newfound sister. She would never admit that, though. She put on a forced smile and gave a nod at the girl “Fine but I’m not into girl bonding shit like painting nails and braiding hair.”

Waverly just laughed at that because she had never for a second imagined Wynonna was into that. She nodded in acknowledgement then looked over at Nicole “So how do you suppose we go about this?”

“Well I talked to my aunt” Nicole shook her head because that sounded weird. “She is open to spending some time with me and answering any questions I have about my parents. She even said we could have sleepovers if we wanted…” She bit her lip because the thought of having a proper sleepover with Waverly still gave her butterflies. It was crazy to think that right smack dab in the middle of all the drama and lies was the girl she still very much had a crush on. 

Waverly smiled shyly at the mention of the sleepovers. Everything was so mixed up and confusing and yet she was still able to have a moment like this where thinking about just being a teenager with Nicole made her giddy. When all was said and done they were still just kids. They had every right to act as such and in that moment she remembered that.

Wynonna missed the shyness and the blushing from the girls because she had already started talking “Sleepovers are the exact type of girl bonding that I am not down with!” She wailed in agony and rolled her eyes. Okay, so she was still her obnoxious, self-centered self too. They all had lives and priorities outside of this web of lies that had been weaved around their lives. Wynonna was desperate to get back to that life. 

“How about-” Nicole rolled her eyes at Wynonna’s dramatics and motioned at her with a shrug “We do dinner or something? It’s not a sleepover but it gives you two a chance to get to know one another. I don’t even have to be there if you don’t-”

“No!” Wynonna and Waverly both shouted at the same time. They looked at one another curiously before looking back at Nicole.

“Don’t leave me alone with her. What if I don’t like her?” Wynonna spoke as if Waverly weren’t standing right there.

Waverly let out an offended gasp and folded her arms “That’s so rude. Besides, what makes you think I’m the unlikable one here?”

“Please” Wynonna huffed in amusement and gestured to herself as a smirk moved over her lips “I’m a hilarious badass with great hair. Everyone loves me.”

“But Everyone hates you, Wynonna,” Nicole said with a roll of her eyes.

“I’m aware,” Wynonna answered in a tone mocking Nicole, nodding quickly at her.

Nicole gave a slight shake of her head at how annoying her sister was being before she looked back at Waverly. She gave her an apologetic smile, motioning with her head toward Wynonna, before shrugging it off. “Fine, I’ll be there at dinner.”

“You know what?” Wynonna waved both hands in opposite directions, as if flicking both the girls aside, before lifting a finger on both hands to bring attention to herself and the idea she had “I just had a stroke of genius. I know what we’re gonna do.”

“Wait, what?” Nicole eyed Wynonna suspiciously because she knew whenever she had a definitive idea like this it never led anywhere good. “Why do you get to decide?”

“Because I’m the oldest'' Wynonna stated with a matter-of-fact tone and smiled a little too widely. She then shifted focus to Waverly, pointing at her with both hands “Go get a bag of shit and tell your fake aunt you are going out. Actually…” She gestured with her hand to stop Waverly from moving and shook her head “...scratch that, Earps don’t ask for permission. Just go get some shit.”

“Where are we going?” Waverly threw her hands up in a full arm shrug.

“We are going to go bond,” Wynonna then whirled around toward Nicole. “You…” She eyed her up and down, pointed at her whole being, before shrugging “You need to shower, you look like Hell.” She turned back to Waverly quickly “Hurry up and go get your shit so you can take me back to my truck.”

“What do you have going on inside that head of yours?” Nicole stood there looking almost defiant with her arms crossed and a skeptical eyebrow lifted on her forehead. 

“Bonding” Wynonna answered sarcastically because she had totally already answered that question. “Just don’t worry about it, alright?”

“Wynonna, I don’t like-”

“Shuddup” Wynonna put a hand in Nicole’s face then turned and looked at Waverly. She threw her other hand over her shoulder, pointing toward the house with her thumb, and clicked her tongue a few times to indicate she wanted Waverly to get a move on. 

Waverly wanted to argue but her curious nature had already gotten the best of her. She hurried inside to gather some things like she had been instructed to. What did she have to lose? At this point she was open to anything because nothing was going as planned anyway.

Nicole had opened her mouth to argue again but Wynonna once more pushed her hand in her face. 

“No more out of you” Wynonna pushed her palm into Nicole’s mouth and nose and playfully curled her fingers against the girl’s forehead and cheek. She pretended to squeeze her face before pushing her head away and dropping her hand “Just trust me, alright? Besides…” She motioned back to the house that Waverly had disappeared into and nodded “...she’s going along with it. I don’t wanna play favorites but she’s already moving ahead of you as the cooler sister.”

“You’re so fucking rude” Nicole growled and pushed Wynonna out of her way as she stormed toward the car.

Wynonna smirked in amusement at herself. She liked knowing how to push Nicole’s buttons. She was glad to see that hadn’t changed. As she let that thought linger her eyes moved back to the house that Waverly had grown up in. She eyed it for a moment as a new thought moved through her mind. She had been so terrified to lose her sister through all of this but instead she had actually gained one. That meant something to her and she wanted to protect that at all costs. She wasn’t one who usually bent for others but she had been bending for Nicole and now it seemed she would have a bend a little for Waverly, too. It was the right thing to do, afterall. And now she knew the world was upside down because she was slightly excited to do the right thing.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

After leaving Waverly’s house the girls had made their way to the Homestead. They weren’t staying long. It was a quick pit stop so that Nicole could shower and change and Wynonna could grab a few things. Waverly had taken her time to look around a bit and it had left her feeling a little nauseated. It was as if she were walking through a memory of a former life from outside her body. Even though she hadn’t grown up at the Homestead, she should have, and that was an eerie piece of knowledge to be carrying around with her.

She was grateful when the other two had finished up and it was time to leave. Wynonna had wanted to take the truck but Waverly decided it would be best to have her car with her as well just in case their plans after whatever they were doing diverged. She was pretty independant and didn’t like to rely on anyone, especially when it came to transportation.

Nicole had decided to ride with Waverly. She did it partly because she didn’t want Wynonna trying to lose Waverly on the way to wherever they were going. The other part of her reason was because she hadn’t been alone with Waverly since the night before and even then it had been less about quality time and more about their lives falling apart at the seams together. She wanted to check in on her and see how she was doing but she also wanted a few minutes alone to try to capture just a bit of normalcy again. 

They sat in silence inside Waverly’s car as she followed behind Wynonna’s truck. They had started out having a light conversation but that had since faded and now there was a little awkwardness thickening the air in the car. It was weird because it had never been awkward between them. Nicole didn’t like that it suddenly was. What did it mean? Had everything suddenly changed? The silence was killing her and she had to break it. 

“So I have about a million things going through my mind right now but I keep circling around to one thing in particular” Nicole spoke softly, starting at her left palm as her right index finger tapped at the creases there nervously. “But, um, with everything going on I don’t really feel like it’s appropriate to be thinking about and yet…” She shrugged and glanced at Waverly with a crooked smile “...I can’t stop.”

Waverly turned to look at Nicole when she started to speak. She frowned a little bit when she noticed that the girl seemed nervous. She almost asked why that was the case but then Nicole kept on about everything she was thinking and how it was inappropriate and she decided to just let her speak. She was curious by the time Nicole finished and she couldn’t help the soft smile that came to her lips as she asked “And what might that one, maybe inappropriate thing you keep thinking about be?”

Nicole felt herself blush. She wondered how it would be perceived but at the same time she couldn’t back down now. She needed something good to come out of this mess. She drew in a deep breath and shrugged as she spoke “Is everything we’ve learned about our families going to make this-” She motioned to herself then to Waverly “-weird?”

Waverly arched an eyebrow at the way Nicole had phrased the question. She bit the inside of her cheek to stop from smiling. The girl was still adorable when she wasn’t sure about something and she was so grateful for that fact. She adored that about her. She nodded at Nicole to let her know she heard what she had said but she did not answer right away. She took a few moments to think it over before she glanced back at her passenger “What exactly do you mean by your use of the word this?”

Nicole blushed brighter and she breathed out a laugh as her eyes dropped to her knees. She licked over her lips and she drew in a breath to try and calm down her beating heart. She knew what Waverly was doing. She hated it but at the same time she loved it because it meant the girl wanted her to say it out loud thus making it real. If they had learned anything over the past couple days it was that hearing something out loud made it undeniably real. 

She breathed in deeply, steadying her nerves, before finally looking back at Waverly. She smiled slightly and when she spoke it was softly but straight forward “I mean how we’ve kissed and I can’t stop thinking about it. How I’ve had a crush on you for years and now that I’ve gotten to know you I can’t imagine not being around you. I mean spending nights laying under the stars laughing and talking until we pass out. I mean-” She let out a dreamy sigh and reached out to take hold of Waverly’s hand that was not on the wheel. With her eyes locked on the girl of her dreams it was as if she had found a brazen bravery she didn’t know she possessed and the words came out before she could second guess herself “I’m talking about you and I being together. Will you be my girlfriend, Waverly.”

To say that she was surprised by how direct Nicole had been would be an understatement. Waverly’s eyes fluttered along with her heart that had taken flight in her chest at the words. She felt herself tremble as a smile slowly spread over her lips. She had forgotten what it felt like to be a teenager. Her raging hormones and unexpected feelings seemed easy compared to everything else they were dealing with. She bit her lower lip and glanced at Nicole for a moment. Her lips curled into a crooked, bashful smile before finally answering “You want to be my girlfriend?”

“More than anything” Nicole breathed the words out as if she had been holding in the sentiment her entire life. 

Waverly blushed very lightly as she now focused on pulling her car up into an empty field next to where Wynonna had parked. Once they were settled and the engine was off, she glanced around their surroundings. She didn’t immediately recognize where they were and she looked over at Nicole curiously “Where are we?”

“Oh no” Nicole noticed where they were and quickly started to shake her head. “No, no, no, this is a terrible idea!” The previous conversation dropped to the back of her mind as she hurried out of the car and over to where Wynonna was already unloading the things she had packed in a duffel bag at the Homestead. “Are you crazy?”

“Woah” Wynonna stepped away from the bull rush from Nicole and let out a snort of a laugh. “Calm down, Red. This is going to be a blast.”

“What’s going to be a blast?” Waverly had gotten out of the car and was now joining the other two.

Wynonna smiled proudly at her new sister as she crouched down and unzipped the bag she had dropped on the ground. She pulled the opening of the bag apart widely then motioned for Waverly to take a look “Just a little coming of age tradition in the house of Earp.”

“Guns?” Waverly’s eyes went wide when she looked into the bag.

“This is a terrible idea” Nicole shook her head then looked at Waverly with wide, panic-filled eyes “You don’t have to do this if it makes you uncomfortable.”

“This is awesome” Waverly laughed out softly and crouched down next to the bag. She started to dig through, admiring all of the options, as her head nodded at each one “Where did you get all these?”

“Our dad’s a cop” Wynonna snorted in amusement because everyone knew that. She smiled widely up at Nicole and nodded toward Waverly, seeming impressed by her excitement “See? This was a great idea.”

“Can I talk to you?” Nicole huffed as she reached down and not-so-politely pulled Wynonna up to standing. She led her away from the duffel bag quickly then motioned toward Waverly “This is so irresponsible! She isn’t trained to shoot a gun. What if one of us gets hurt?”

“Calm down” Wynonna rolled her eyes as her arms folded across her chest boredly “You wanted me to bond with her and this is my idea of bonding, alright? No fake, forced conversations over shitty food. No giggling and pretending to care about who the other has a crush on or whatever else teenage girls talk about?” She waved her hand to the side dismissively because she didn’t care what normal girls bonded over. She was not normal. “Besides…” She motioned toward Waverly and shrugged “...she’s totally into it. Look!”

Just then Waverly excitedly pumped a shotgun and smiled widely.

“See?” Wynonna laughed then looked back at Nicole. “It’s gonna be fine.”

“I really think we should-”

“Chill” Wynonna put her hand up to stop Nicole from lecturing her. She smirked and motioned with her head toward her new sister “Let me do this the only way I know how.”

Nicole glanced past Wynonna to see Waverly eyeing a pistol now. She finally gave up with a sigh and nodded “Okay, fine. But we have to be careful and if she feels uncomfortable at all during this we stop, okay?”

“Fine,” Wynonna shrugged it off and turned back toward Waverly and the guns.

“And” Nicole caught her before she could walk away completely. When Wynonna turned back with annoyance on her face, Nicole set her with a warning glare “Be nice to her. No teasing her because she doesn’t know how to handle a gun. Not everyone’s parents think it’s normal to teach their kids how to shoot by the age of ten, okay?”

“Okay” Wynonna mocked Nicole’s stern tone before sticking out her tongue and rolling her eyes. She turned away now and headed back toward her new sister.

Nicole clenched her jaw and fought off her own annoyance. If having Wynonna as a sister taught her anything it was most definitely patience.

“Alright, what do you know about shooting a gun?” Wynonna approached Waverly with a smile while motioning to the pistol the girl held.

“Point, aim, and squeeze the trigger” Waverly stated with a shrug as she looked away from the gun and up at Wynonna. “Use a wide stance and hold your breath when you shoot.” She arched an eyebrow as if asking if she had been correct as she shrugged at herself “Did I miss anything?”

Wynonna looked surprised by the fact that Waverly seemed to know what to do. She stared at her for a moment with her mouth hanging open. She then quickly tried to shake it off and huffed as she reached for the gun “You forgot about keeping the safety on until you’re ready to shoot and to never point it at a person you don’t intend to kill” She scoffed the words as if she had made some grand point and really put Waverly in her place. She then lifted the gun she held, took aim at one of the cans lined up on the fence a couple dozen yards away, and took her shot.

Waverly fought a smirk of amusement off as she watched Wynonna take her shot. When it missed low, she gave a nod as if she were impressed, and gave the girl a patronizing smile “That was close. You almost hit the target.”

“Oh what do you know?” Wynonna huffed. She clicked the safety in place then set the gun down on top of the old wooden table their father had brought out to the range years earlier. “Let’s stop playing with the kiddie toys and bring out some real firepower” She smirked at that as she turned to the duffel bag and started to rummage through her options.

“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” Nicole moved over to Waverly with concern on her face. “I know not everyone is comfortable with guns and-”

Waverly had picked up the pistol Wynonna had abandoned. She was already aiming by the time Nicole joined them and she very quickly fired off a few rounds. With each new pull of the trigger a can at the other end of the range was displaced by a bullet. After five shots, she popped the safety back in place and smiled brightly at Nicole “I am positive I am okay with this.”

Both Wynonna and Nicole looked totally stunned by what they had just seen. After a few moments of staring in disbelief, Nicole let out an impressed laugh and motioned toward the end of the range “I didn’t think you’d ever shot a gun before.”

“Haven’t” Waverly said plainly with a shrug as she set the gun on the table again. “Guess it just comes naturally.”

Wynonna wanted to be annoyed so badly but she simply couldn’t be. Instead, she let herself be impressed and nodded at Waverly “Well then, let’s kick this up a notch.” She tossed the shotgun toward Waverly without warning and when the girl barely flinched in catching it, she smirked. She had known deep in her gut that this was a great idea and boy did she love being right.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

The girls spent most of the day at the range. It had been nearly effortless for them to all get along. There had been a few spats, mostly between Wynonna and Nicole, but none of them were serious enough to threaten the fun day they were having. Waverly and Wynonna had gotten into an argument over whether or not it was considered cheating to be ambidextrous. Ultimately, Wynonna had called her a double handed freak and stormed off to set up more targets.

“It’s getting late” Nicole glanced around and noticed that the day was starting to turn into evening. None of them had eaten much more than the few snacks her new aunt had sent with them when they had left her house that morning. As if on cue, her stomach growled and she looked at the other two with a frown “We should probably get something to eat.”

“Just one more” Wynonna held up a single finger as if to emphasize her request. “I want to see if she can get a bullet through five cans.”

“Fine” Nicole gave a nod of agreement only because she couldn’t remember the last time she had seen her sister this excited. She laughed happily as she watched Wynonna hurry off to go set up the cans.

Nicole moved back to where Waverly was reloading the pistol again and gave her a crooked grin “Did you have fun today?”

Waverly gave a single nod, glancing up at Nicole with a light smile on her features. Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully, as if she were fully regarding all of Nicole’s being. She looked the girl over once and when she got back to her eyes, her face softened and she let out a happy sounding sigh “Yes.”

“Good” Nicole’s smile grew a bit wider which brought definition to her dimples. “I have to admit I was worried you two would fight the entire-”

“No” Waverly gave a dismissive flick toward where Wynonna was balancing cans on top of each other. 

“No?” Nicole looked confused, and worried.

“I mean, yes, I had fun. But that’s not what my yes was for” Waverly shook her head as if trying to shake her focus back to what she had originally meant to say.

“What, wait?” Nicole looked really lost now.

“I had fun” Waverly stated clearly with a firm nod so that Nicole would understand her answer. 

“Good” Nicole sighed in relief. She had been so confused about what Waverly was trying to say.

“But, when I said yes the first time-” Waverly motioned behind Nicole as if gesturing to the beginning of this exchange “-I meant yes I’ll be your girlfriend.”

All confusion left Nicole and she now stood there looking stunned. She stared at Waverly like she had spoken a completely different language for a few seconds before her brain caught up to her ears and a smile erupted from ear to ear across her face “Wait, really?”

“Yes” Waverly laughed at how surprised Nicole looked. “I realized I hadn’t answered you. I didn’t mean to ignore the question. Other things started happening and it seemed like the moment had passed to answer it. But I’m answering it now-” she pointed to her feet to indicate the very seconds they were in “-because I didn’t want you worried about my answer. Because my answer is yes.”

“Yes?” Both of Nicole’s eyebrows rose on her head as her entire face continued to light up with joy.

“Totally” Waverly nodded once as her own face lifted in a smile.

“Oh my god! This is the best day ever!” Nicole laughed out, giving a victorious fist pump. Her hand then reached out and she cupped Waverly’s face as her gaze fell adoringly to her eyes “You’re amazing and so awesome and can I kiss you right now?”

“You don’t have to ask” Waverly giggled, already lifting onto her toes in anticipation of the kiss.

“I just meant, like-” Nicole gestured to wherever Wynonna was at then shook it off and flipped her hand to the side to brush away her concern “-nevermind, I’m going to kiss you now.”

“About time” Waverly laughed very softly as she leaned into Nicole, tilted her head up to willingly accept the kiss that Nicole was all too excited about giving her.

Wynonna had been halfway back to the girls when she saw them lean into the kiss. Her eyes went wide and she stopped in her tracks. She stared at the scene for a few moments as she tried to process what was happening. Then, just like that, she let out a soft laugh and continued toward them. Once she was within earshot she not-so-politely interrupted “So my sisters are making out with each other. This day is just filled with twists and turns.”

Nicole groaned and pulled away from Waverly. She narrowed her eyes and stared a fiery glare at Wynonna “Did you have to say it that way? Now it sounds gross!”

Wynonna lifted her hands in surrender as she approached the gun table now that the other two had untangled their tongues “Just stating the facts, Red. Also-” She used a single finger to gesture between the girls then raised a curious eyebrow “-is this a new development or did I totally interrupt the walk of shame outside Gus’ this morning?”

Nicole blushed so red so quickly she thought she might pass out from the loss of blood flow to her brain.

Waverly blushed too but managed to give her head a shake at the questioning “Not that it’s any of your business-”

“Everything you do is my business now” Wynonna corrected her with a smirk on her lips.

“Not that it is any of your business” Waverly stated more firmly, narrowing her eyes as if daring Wynonna to butt in again “But Nicole and I had something developing before we learned everything we’ve learned.”

“Something developing?” Wynonna snickered at the phrase then looked at Nicole but motioned to Waverly “You have yourself a real romantic on your hands.”

“Will you just shut up” Nicole groaned and walked away from both of them because she needed a moment to breathe, settle the raging blush that was lighting her cheeks, and try to calm her racing heart. She knew Wynonna would never let her live his moment down. She rolled her eyes in annoyance at that thought as she crouched near the duffel bag “Let’s start packing up.”

“No, wait, I wanna see if Quick Draw McGraw can knock out 5 cans in one shot” Wynonna motioned to Waverly enthusiastically.

“Quick Draw McGraw?” Waverly cast a curious glance at Wynonna.

“Better than me calling you a snitch, right?” Wynonna shrugged then gestured to the gun in silent urging for her to take her shot.

“Can’t you just call me Waverly?” She mumbled as she lifted the pistol to take her aim.

“No she can’t” Nicole answered from where she was still crouched near the bag.

Wynonna smiled at the response from her sister then looked back at Waverly with a nod of agreement “I’ll find a better suited nickname once I decide you aren’t totally annoying. Now…” She flicked her hand toward the cans at the end of the range impatiently so that Waverly would focus and take her shot.

Waverly rolled her eyes in annoyance before focusing once more on her aim. She felt the corner of her lips twitch into a smile as she thought about the fact that Wynonna was already thinking about a nickname for her. She didn’t know her very well but she could tell nicknames were a way of Wynonna telling you she liked you. The thought gave her butterflies. That meant that there might come a day where being sisters felt natural and the fact that they had grown up in separate households would be forgotten.

“Oh my god, just shoot already!” Wynonna whined like a little kid not getting her way.

Waverly snorted in annoyance then pulled the trigger.

“That was so cool!” Wynonna let out a laugh of amusement as she approached Waverly with her eyes glued to the end of the range. She shook her head in amazement then shifted her gaze to her new sister “Okay, you totally pass the coolness test.”

“Gee thanks,” Waverly mumbled through a laugh as she moved pieces and parts on the gun to unload it and make it safe. 

“So, dinner?” Nicole asked just as her stomach growled again.

“I could eat” Waverly smiled softly at her girlfriend. Wow, her girlfriend. The word gave her all sorts of happy tingles in her stomach and chest.

“Let’s grab some pizza” Wynonna took the gun from the table and tucked into the bag before zipping it up safely.

“Sounds good to me” Nicole agreed with a nod. She hadn’t taken her eyes off of Waverly since she had turned away from the table. She had a dopey grin on her lips because she could not believe that the girl standing just a few feet away was her girlfriend.

Wynonna didn’t notice the googly eyes between the other two. She had turned to toss the guns into the back of her truck before climbing inside the cab and starting the engine. She checked the time on her dashboard clock and when she realized what time it was an idea came to her. She leaned out her window and gave a nod to Waverly “Hey, how do you feel about vengeance?”

“I, uh, um” Waverly looked confused by the random question. She shook her head at it “I don’t really hold grudges.”

“Sure you do. You’re an Earp, it’s in your DNA” Wynonna smirked then glanced at Nicole. “Meet me back at the Homestead. I have an idea.”

“Wait, Wynonna, where are you-” But before Nicole could finish her question Wynonna had popped the truck into gear and sped off leaving a spray of dirt and rocks in her wake.

As the dust settled, Waverly moved over to Nicole with a wide smile on her lips. She slid her arms around Nicole’s elbow and pulled her arm to get her attention “Did you hear what she said?”

“Yeah, she has some sort of idea and I have a really bad feeling about it” Nicole huffed with worry.

“No, not that” Waverly tugged at Nicole’s arm again and when the girl finally looked down at her, her own smile grew “She called me an Earp.”

Nicole couldn’t help but smile at that for two reasons. The first reason being that her girlfriend looked absolutely pleased by the sentiment. The second reason was because that meant Wynonna accepted Waverly. That was something she could have never imagined before all of this had happened. 

“Well you are” Nicole finally agreed with a nod as she turned and slid both her arms around Waverly. She leaned down and kissed her very lightly, letting it linger for only a few seconds, before pulling back and smiling again “Let’s go see what Wynonna has up her sleeve, shall we?”

Waverly nodded excitedly and bounced away from Nicole. She dug her keys out of her pocket and once the doors to her car were unlocked she climbed inside. She started her engine and waited for Nicole to settle in before putting her car in drive and guiding it back the way they had come. “I know you are probably so used to Wynonna’s ideas that it’s hard to get excited by them anymore but I have to admit she’s kind of a blast to hang out with. I never know what to expect from her. It’s thrilling.”

“You can expect that whatever she has in mind will more than likely end up with us getting in trouble” Nicole huffed out through a soft laugh. She smiled at the thought. Wynonna was a pretty incredible person to have in your life. She was lucky enough to call her family. That is something she would never take for granted. She nodded to herself in silent agreement of that sentiment as she reached over and took hold of Waverly’s hand “I hope you’re open to trouble because Wynonna will undoubtedly drag you into her shenanigans whether you are a willing participant or not.”

Waverly gave a tight, enthusiastic squeeze to Nicole’s hand as she focused on the road ahead of her. She nodded in acknowledgement of her girlfriend’s statement “I’m pretty much at the point where nothing can surprise me anymore so I say bring it on.” She glanced at Nicole with a wide, mischievous smile that looked far too similar to Wynonna’s “Besides, I’m an Earp and from what I hear Earps are nothing but trouble.”

~.~.~.~.~.~.


	13. “There are wounds that never show on the body that are deeper and more hurtful than anything that bleeds.”

Nicole’s heart dropped as soon as Waverly pulled into the drive at the Homestead and she saw Ward’s replacement police cruiser there. Her head started shaking and she reached out to put a hand on Waverly’s arm “Stop. Let me out.”

“Is everything alright?” Waverly brought her car to a stop as she looked at Nicole with concern.

“No.” Nicole unbuckled her seatbelt and reached for the door.

“Wait” Waverly reached out and put a hand on her shoulder to stop her from getting out of the car. She shook her head in confusion when Nicole looked back at her “Do you want me to come with?”

“Absolutely not!” Nicole yelped as her eyes widened in horror at the thought. “Just…” She sighed and slid out of the car. Once standing, she leaned down and poked her head back in “...stay here for now, okay?”

“Yeah, okay” Waverly agreed begrudgingly as Nicole shut the door. She watched her approach the house and gave a shrug “It’s not like you really gave me another choice.”

“Now I know you are certifiably insane!” Nicole yelled toward Wynonna who was standing on the front step of the porch. “Or you have a death wish because-” She gestured to the police cruiser parked in the same spot it was always parked in and shook her head “-he will actually murder you for this. I am sure of it.”

“Calm your tatas” Wynonna let out an amused laugh and flicked her hands at Nicole like she was batting away the concern. “I have a great plan.”

“You have a terrible plan!” Nicole squeaked out in panic as she once more gestured to the cruiser. “Whatever you’re thinking, I am not okay with.”

“You need to stop” Wynonna held a hand up in a gesture of halting Nicole from freaking out. She then waved her hand to the side and gave a carefree shrug. “Look, I am doing what needs to be done, alright?” She motioned to where Waverly was in her car behind Nicole and gave a single nod “She’s going to be fine” She then stepped forward and put both hands on Nicole’s shoulders. She gave a little shake, as if jolting the girls worries away from her. “You are going to be fine. I am right here.”

“We can’t just ambush him” Nicole hadn’t really calmed down that much and it showed in her jerked motion toward the house. “He’s going to be pissed.”

“Then let him be pissed” Wynonna patted both of Nicole’s shoulders then dropped her hands away from her completely. She stepped around the girl and motioned in a beckoning fashion to Waverly in the car. She turned and when she saw that Nicole still looked worried, she let out a heavy sigh “Why do you give two shits about his feelings all of a sudden? Besides…” She smirked slightly as she glanced at the house briefly “I’m not gonna tell him we know just yet. I wanna make him squirm first.”

“Wait, what?” Nicole’s panic had returned and she stared with wide eyes at Wynonna. 

“Everything alright?” Waverly approached the porch cautiously, looking between the other two curiously.

“This is gonna be great” Wynonna laughed at herself as she threw her arm around her new sister and turned toward the door. “Just follow my lead and whatever you do, don’t react to him. It drives him crazy.”

“Huh?” Waverly had no idea what that meant but before she could ask she was being pulled toward the front door, stumbling as she did because Wynonna had basically pulled her feet out from under her.

Nicole quickly scrambled to catch up right as Wynonna kicked in the front door with authority.

“Honey, I’m home!” She called out playfully.

Ward barely looked up when he heard the door open. His eyes fell back to the tv for just a split second before doing a double take. This time his eyes widened with a flash of panic when they landed on Waverly. He then looked at Wynonna and the panic faded into irritation. He motioned to Waverly but kept his eyes on Wynonna “What the Hell is she doing here?”

“We’re friends” Wynonna smiled widely and moved her arm around Waverly’s shoulders again. She pulled her so tightly against herself that Waverly tilted in awkwardly against her. “She is going to stay the night. We’re ordering pizza and you don’t get any.”

“You know she’s not welcome here” Ward stood up now, his chest puffed up as he tried to look intimidating. His eyes fell to Waverly again and he deflated just slightly. He had been content to go through life pretending she didn’t exist. He shook the thought away then pointed to the door “She needs to leave.”

“No” Nicole stepped forward and stood defiantly in front of the other two. She put her hands on her hips and stared the man down with a narrowed glare. She knew a lot of things were messed up and confusing but at least one good thing had come out of knowing that Ward wasn't her father. She was no longer afraid of him. “She’s staying. We’re going to work on our lab assignment then crash and if you don’t like it then you can leave.”

Wynonna took a moment to be impressed by Nicole’s newfound balls before she gave a nod of agreement and stepped forward to draw even with her “You heard her. How about you skedaddle down to ye ole watering hole and leave the house to us for the night.”

“I will not be told what to do” Ward huffed as he looked at all three girls. He didn’t know exactly what had changed but he didn’t like the fact that he now had two back talking teenagers with seemingly no regard for authority. Then his eyes landed on Waverly and for a moment his frown wavered. She looked just like her sisters.

Seeing the man’s face falter just slightly caused Wynonna to smirk. She could tell they had gotten to him and he would now spend the rest of the night reeling. She hoped it ate him alive and he couldn’t sleep. She was certain no amount of whiskey would be able to chase away this case of the blues.

Realizing he had softened slightly on Waverly, he shook his head and blinked focus back into his eyes. He looked at Wynonna, then to Nicole, and he felt his irritation with the two rising again. He clenched his jaw and when he spoke it was firmly and intimidating “There are rules around here and I don’t appreciate you two disrespecting them or me.”

“Whatever,” Wynonna waved the weak intimidation tactic to the side then turned to look at the other two. She grabbed hold of Waverly’s arm and once more started to tug her along behind her without warning. 

Nicole was surprised by Wynonna’s sudden exit and she once more had to scramble to catch up. Nothing more was said as they made their way up to the second floor. Once they were on the top landing of the stairs, Nicole managed to reach out and pull at Waverly’s arm just enough to get Wynonna’s attention. Her eyes were wide as she looked at her sister “What the Hell were you thinking?”

“Did you see his face? We totally rattled him” Wynonna laughed out softly and folded her arms across herself as if posing for a victory photo.

“So now we have to deal with him being pissed all night? That doesn’t sound fun at all” Nicole sighed and looked at Waverly with an apologetic look in her eyes “You really don’t have to stay here. Had I known this was her plan I wouldn’t have-”

“Red, look” Wynonna called from her bedroom and motioned for the others to join. She had a triumphant smirk on her lips as she motioned through her window down to the ground floor. Outside, Ward was getting into his police cruiser in a hurry. This made Wynonna snort out a laugh as she looked back at her two sisters “See? I knew he wouldn’t be able to face what he’d done. Now he’s going to go drink himself into a stupor and we have the place to ourselves for the night. So…” She clapped her hands and looked excitedly between the other two “...what do we want on our pizza?”

Nicole shook her head because she was still so annoyed by Wynonna’s antics. She knew the girl loved to annoy people but she felt like maybe Wynonna might be taking it a bit too far. She was exhausted by it, honestly, and knew she would probably be spending the entire night worrying that Ward would come back drunk and angry. She sighed at that thought as her eyes moved to Waverly. “I am so sorry about her.”

“I think it’s kind of funny,” Waverly admitted with a single shoulder shrug. “I mean, sure, it was totally unnecessary but I could tell he was pretty thrown off. It kind of felt nice to see him squirm. I mean, come on, he has lied to us for our entire lives. Doesn’t it feel good to know he is facing the consequences of his actions, even if only very minimally?”

“See?” Wynonna let out a proud laugh and slapped Waverly on the back. She then gave a nod to Nicole “She’s totally down for it so will you pull your panties outta your butt and try to have a little fun tonight?”

Nicole let out a heavy breath through her nose as her eyes moved back and forth between the two girls a few times. When it seemed they were both waiting for her to give in, she finally relented with a sigh and rolled her eyes “Fine, but if he comes home piss drunk and yelling about it I am sending him in your direction.”

“Deal” Wynonna laughed, then stepped back to pull her phone out of her pocket. She dialed a number then put her phone to her ear. As she did she moved to her dresser and dug around in the back of one of her top drawers before producing a little box. Inside that box was a card. She lifted the card to show the others even if they were still across the room “Pizza is on Ward tonight. Any special requests?”

“Oh, do they have dessert?” Waverly perked up excitedly and moved toward Wynonna.

As the two made a happy exchange about what to order, Nicole watched with an exasperated sigh escaping her lips. She was so tired. She would give anything for a normal night in. But as she watched her girlfriend and her sister, who wasn't really her sister, laughing and interacting she couldn’t help but to smile. She had a feeling that normal was gone and this was a sneak peek into her new life. If that was true then, well, she supposed it wasn't so bad. At least they were getting along.

~.~.~.~.

The night had been more perfect than Nicole could have ever dreamed. Sure, there were arguments but that was typical between herself and Wynonna. It wasn’t a big deal and most of them were squashed before they even started. Waverly and Wynonna hadn’t butted heads at all but Nicole suspected that was because Waverly was in her “go with the flow” mode and just soaking it all in. Nicole wouldn’t complain. She liked that out of all the terrible scenarios she had run in her head this was not even close to one of them. It was pleasant. It was a dream, actually. She kind of wished she could freeze them in this moment in time and live in a happy, blissful world where no one was thinking about how messed up their lives actually were. But since she couldn’t she was content to just enjoy being a teenager hanging out with her sister and her girlfriend. 

After pizza and dessert, they argued over a movie to watch until Waverly revealed that one of her favorite movies was also one of Wynonna’s. That had settled it. They put it on and then promptly proceeded to ignore it in favor of talking. Nicole had never seen Wynonna talk so much in her life, let alone so enthusiastically, and yet it almost felt like the girl couldn’t contain herself around Waverly. Part of her wanted to believe that was just the effect Waverly had on a person but the rational part of her knew it was because they were sisters and even if they hadn’t been raised together there was something instinctual about being around each other. The bond was effortless. Nicole was more happy than she could put into words.

She also had a sense of sadness hanging inside her. Sure, she had grown up with Wynonna and they promised that no matter what they would always be family but that didn’t stop her from feeling a pang of loneliness sitting in her stomach. She didn’t have any blood siblings now. She didn't even have parents. She had an aunt she didn’t know. What if they did have to switch homes? She would be alone. Who would she talk to about everything? Who would she borrow clothes from just to annoy? Whose bed would she crawl into in the middle of the night when she couldn’t sleep?

Luckily the feeling had come and gone, for the most part, and she had managed to enjoy the night. She revelled in watching Wynonna and Waverly together. Now that she knew they were sisters it was amazing the similarities they held. Their smiles and laughs were eerily close which made Nicole a little uneasy considering she was crazy for Waverly’s laugh. Did that mean she was attracted to Wynonna, too? She had to stop thinking so much or all of this was going to turn really weird really quickly.

Eventually Wynonna seemed to have laughed and eaten herself into a coma and she passed out on the couch. Nicole had asked Waverly if she wanted to go to bed but she had not been tired so the two of them decided to grab a couple blankets, a lantern, and go to the barn. Nicole had insisted that from the loft in the barn you could see the entire sky. It was an offer Waverly could simply not let herself pass up.

They laid on their backs, side by side, wrapped in three blankets, their heads on little pillows of hay as they stared through the hole in the roof of the barn at the night sky. It had been quiet for a few minutes, the two of them simply enjoying the silence and peace of the night while keeping incredible company. 

Nicole eventually reached down and took Waverly’s hand into hers. She gave it a squeeze and smiled. She let out a soft sigh which rose above them into the night sky in a cloud of warmth before she spoke softly so as not to ruin the mood “So, Waverly, I was thinking that I know so much about you and yet I don’t know anything at all.”

A soft laugh left Waverly’s lips and she glanced at Nicole next to her. A small grin moved over her mouth before she looked back to the sky and nodded “Should I start from the beginning or do you have a specific question?”

“No need to start from the beginning. I think I know way too much already” Nicole laughed at the thought and then cleared her throat before speaking firmly as if stating facts “Waverly Jones, but actually not Jones at all. Haught, technically, as that was your dead parents’ last name. But, also, not Haught because you were switched at birth. You are an Earp and, well, I know everything about the Earps so there’s no need to go into details there.”

Waverly giggled very slightly, mostly at the way Nicole was speaking. It was almost as if she were an announcer at a sporting event or something.

“I also know that your real birthday is not actually September 8th” Nicole glanced at Waverly briefly, smiling at the fact that she was smiling, before she continued “At least you know I will never forget your birthday. That is a definite benefit of dating someone born on the same day as you.”

Waverly nodded in agreement as another giggle left her lips. She turned and when she saw Nicole had just been looking at her she felt her heart skip a beat. “Something tells me you’re not the type to forget a birthday anyway so I was not worried about that.”

Nicole warmed with blush which was nice since her cheeks were red from the cold. She shrugged and gave another squeeze to Waverly’s hand “You’re probably right. I am pretty good with dates.” Truth was, she would never forget any detail about Waverly. She still knew what she was wearing the first time they had met in the grocery store when they were eight.

Waverly felt her stomach do a bit of a flip at the confirmation that Nicole would have never forgotten her birthday. She had a feeling Nicole was thoughtful like that and hearing it confirmed just warmed her at her core. Nicole really was an amazing person. She smiled at the thought and shifted so she was now snuggled up against Nicole’s side tightly, laying her head on her shoulder and letting her hand rest on her stomach “What else do you know about me?”

“You like carrot cake” Nicole whispered the words breathlessly because of the way Waverly had shifted into her. She released the hand she had been holding and lifted that arm out of the way now. She moved it around Waverly’s back and pulled her a little closer to let the girl know she was more than welcome to lay against her any time. “You’re a cheerleader, you speak four languages, and you are nice to everyone you meet.”

Waverly bit her lip shyly as she watched her fingertips tap lightly at the blankets that covered Nicole’s stomach. The things Nicole said were all well known but it was the way she said them. She spoke as if they were intimate details, something important to only them, and that made her feel more special and seen than she had ever felt in her life.

“And your favorite pop-tart is cherry” Nicole finished the last one with a soft laugh. She looked down at the top of Waverly’s head and let out a happy sigh. “Also, you have made me probably the happiest person in the entire world.”

Waverly once more bit her lip, this time fighting off a smile, as her head lifted and she looked up at her girlfriend. “Well that is something we have in common because ever since you came over to my house that first time I have had a hard time not smiling. Even with everything-” She flicked the hand resting on Nicole’s as if batting the world away “-You’ve still managed to make me smile. You’ve made me feel safe. You’ve made me feel like maybe this isn’t all that bad because I have you by my side through it all.”

Nicole’s heart fluttered as she smiled down into Waverly’s beautiful eyes. She really couldn’t believe that this was real. She had dreamt so many times about a moment just like this and now it was actually happening. She almost felt like she wanted to pinch herself. Instead, she squeezed her arm around her girlfriend and felt the weight press against her and she knew she was awake. “To be fair” She started softly, her smile holding as she spoke “You offered to be there for me first so, really, it’s the least I could do.”

A soft laugh escaped Waverly’s lips as she shifted up onto her elbow just enough to bring herself eye level with Nicole “Your sense of humor and ability to joke around in the face of everything terrible going on is one of my absolute favorite things about you.” She leaned in as she spoke and on the last of her words she brought her lips into a gentle kiss.

Nicole’s smile had brightened as Waverly spoke to her until the moment she realized she was leaning in for a kiss. She quickly shifted focus, closed her eyes, and accepted the kiss without hesitation. She brought her right hand up to the back of her girlfriend’s head and held her there gently, allowing them to stay in the kiss without pushing it any deeper than Waverly might have intended it go.

It was brief, lingering on for a handful of seconds, before Waverly finally pulled away from the kiss. She smiled happily then brought her hand to rest just above Nicole’s heart before resting her chin on her knuckles. She stared at Nicole with nothing but complete and total adoration in her eyes before speaking in a whisper “Do you think it’s crazy that just a few days ago we were basically strangers and now we’re so intertwined it’s practically impossible to continue our lives without one another being apart of it somehow?”

Nicole blinked once in surprise at the random philosophical question that had just been posed. It was so unexpected. She liked that about Waverly. The girl was always thinking, always challenging what was around her. Nicole had a feeling it would keep things interesting. “How about we leave the heavy stuff for our second date” She whispered as her hand moved up and down Waverly’s back gently where she held the girl against her. “I’d like to go back to the first date stuff like what’s your favorite color?”

Waverly rolled her eyes playfully, like she was upset that Nicole had changed the subject, before she giggled lightly and nodded in acknowledgement “Yellow is my favorite color. Yours?”

“The color of your eyes” Nicole answered without skipping a beat.

“You’re so cheesy” Waverly chuckled and gave her head a shake. She couldn’t stop smiling, though. It was just the effect of being around Nicole. “Do you have a middle name?”

“Rayleigh” Nicole wrinkled her nose in disliking. “I’ve never been a fan.”

“Nicole Rayleigh Earp” Waverly mumbled the name to herself and after a moment of thought she nodded “It’s cute.”

“I think it makes me sound like a character from Little House On The Prairie” Nicole grumbled.

“You could always change it to Haught?” Waverly lifted an eyebrow at her own suggestion.

Nicole’s eyes fluttered in surprise because she hadn’t thought about that. She hadn’t really had time to think about anything like that. It had all been a whirlwind and she was still trying to come to terms with the fact that it was all true. She wasn’t sure she was ready to start considering what to do next. She blinked at the thought and gave a sort of panicked look to her girlfriend “Are you changing your name?”

“Oh, I don’t-” Waverly shook her head quickly as she sat up off of Nicole completely. She pulled the blanket around herself and shrugged. “No. I don’t think so. At least not until I graduate.”

Nicole sat up slowly, worried she might have upset her girlfriend. She reached out and placed a hand on her knee as she used the other hand to keep the blanket closed tightly around them in the small space they were huddled in “Are you going to keep Jones, then?”

“Yeah” Waverly seemed a bit more sure about her answer. “I mean, all of my school stuff is under Jones. It’ll be easier to keep it that way for college or whatever.”

“Are you sure it’s all under Jones?” Nicole whispered softly. She hated that she questioned everything now but it was the world they had been unwillingly thrust into. 

“Why wouldn’t it be?” Waverly looked kind of surprised that Nicole had doubts.

“Well, your aunt-” Nicole shook her head and put a hand to her heart “-Shelia, I mean, said they used Jones because it was my mom’s maiden name. Plus it was so common that anyone who might try to dig into your past would come up with a whole lot of wrong turns. That way, you know, they could cover up the whole accident and eventual switch up without anyone figuring it out.”

“So?” Waverly didn’t really think her not-aunt’s explanation about why they had used the maiden name to bury the truth was reason enough for Nicole to doubt that all of Waverly’s records didn’t have that name.

“So what if it wasn’t a legal name change? They just used Jones to hide the truth but your official paperwork still says Haught? I mean, that’s what the real birth certificate says” Nicole shrugged as if that should have been an obvious conclusion. 

“Stop” Waverly closed her eyes and held her hand up to politely get Nicole to stop talking. She thought about it all for a moment then shook her head. As her eyes came open again she frowned when her gaze settled on Nicole “I’ll figure it out later. We have so much to figure out that I don’t even know where to begin. When I start to think about it I feel like I’m barely hanging onto my sanity.”

Nicole realized she had upset her girlfriend. She frowned and immediately shifted so she was next to her again and was able to slide her arm around her waist. “You’re right, I’m sorry” She whispered as she pulled Waverly tightly against her side. “I guess I just have trust issues now.”

Waverly let out a sad sounding sigh at the statement and nodded her head a few times against Nicole’s shoulders “They really did a number on us, didn’t they?”

Nicole let out a heavy breath and squeezed her girlfriend tightly. She lifted her eyes to the sky and thought about everything all over again for a few moments. No one should have to deal with a mess this tangled, ever, but especially not two innocent teenagers trying to get through highschool. She shook her head at that then turned and kissed the top of Waverly’s head “I’m glad I’m not alone, though.”

“Me too” Waverly agreed as her arms moved around Nicole’s waist. She hugged her gently as her face buried against her shoulder. She took a few moments to just feel the comfort and safety that simply being near Nicole afforded her. She really couldn’t imagine doing this without her. 

They sat in silence like that for a few minutes. Nicole stroked Waverly’s long hair that laid along her back and stared at the night sky. Waverly kept herself tucked tightly against her girlfriend's warm body. Her head was pressed to her chest and felt herself deeply comforted by the beating of Nicole’s heart. It was a nice little reminder that even though everything had been flipped on its head they were still alive. Sometimes that’s all someone needed in order to feel like it was going to be alright.

“I really like Wynonna” Waverly spoke very softly so as not to startle Nicole since they had been sitting in the silence of the night for so long.

Nicole looked down at the girl in her arms and let out a very soft laugh. It was so random. Then again, Waverly’s mind was never at rest. “You’ll grow to only tolerate her because of the fact that she’s family.”

“She’s not really that bad, is she?” Worry painted Waverly’s features as she turned her head to look up at her girlfriend.

Nicole met Waverly’s concerned gaze and immediately shook her head. She let out a very content sigh and when she spoke it was softly but with nothing but honesty in her tone “No, Wynonna is amazing. She has a tough exterior because of the fact that our parents never really showed us much warmth. But underneath all of that is a huge, bleeding heart and when she cares about you it’s…” Her smile grew and it was obvious just how much she truly loved her sister “...you never have to wonder if she’ll have your back. She loves fiercely, without apology, and her loyalty knows no limits.” She gave a nod at her own words as her hand lifted to push some of Waverly’s bangs off her eyes and behind her ear “You’re going to love being her sister.”

Waverly was absolutely fixated by the way Nicole spoke about Wynonna. She loved seeing that sisterly bond was still intact, in the both of them, regardless of what the truth was. Just the way Nicole’s eyes lit up when she spoke about her sister made Waverly’s heart thump a little faster. She hoped one day she got to feel those same things about Wynonna. She had always wanted a sister and she was not going to squander her chance at having one now. She let out a happy sigh at the thought and nodded at the words from her girlfriend “I can’t wait.”

“Me either” Nicole agreed as her fingers brushed along Waverly’s cheek and down her jawline gently. She took in all of the features of her girlfriend’s beautiful face and after a moment she let out a very bashful sounding laugh “You know what’s kind of weird?”

“Hmm?” Waverly hummed in questioning as her brows lifted curiously.

“You two have very similar laughs.”

“We do?” Waverly sat up a bit, looking surprised at the news.

Nicole gave a single nod of affirmation “I was watching you two together tonight and it’s easy to tell you two are related.”

“Really?” Waverly’s smile was growing by the moment.

“Totally” Nicole laughed very softly as if that shouldn’t surprise Waverly since they were technically related. “It’s kind of crazy I never noticed before. Then again, I guess I didn’t have a reason to look for the similarities. But now, it’s obvious.”

“That is kind of weird. But also kind of neat” Waverly started to lay back down against Nicole now that her surprise was wearing off. Before she could settle she gasped excitedly and sat up again “Oh my god! We should totally document that for our project!”

Nicole let out a groan that turned into a laugh. She closed her eyes and shook her head as she pulled her arm more tightly around the girl in silent urging for her to settle back down against her “I totally forgot about that!” She opened her eyes as a distressed sigh left her lips “That has literally been the last thing on my mind.”

“Sorry” Waverly felt a little guilty about bringing up school. She decided to drop the subject for the night. She settled back against Nicole and another smile moved over her features. She was just genuinely happy to share moments like this with her girlfriend. That still sounded weird to her but she liked it. Of all the new titles and names and truths she had learned about recently, she had definitely adjusted to ‘girlfriend’ the easiest. 

Nicole dipped her chin and kissed the top of Waverly’s head once they had settled back against the hay again. Another silence surrounded them but this one held nothing but lightness and ease. They both laid there together, enjoying one another, eyes focused on the night sky above them. They had to embrace these moments of quiet together because they knew that in the coming days, weeks, and months the quiet would probably be less and less as the web of lies around their lives started to unravel.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

A glass shattered and a shout was heard. The noise snapped Waverly’s eyes open and for a few seconds she was confused about where she was. Then she felt movement beside her and she remembered that she was in Nicole’s bed. She would have smiled at that but her bliss at the thought was interrupted by Wynonna bursting through the bedroom door.

“You gotta go” Wynonna’s eyes were wild with panic as she started to move around the room to collect Waverly’s overnight bag.

“What’s going on?” Nicole had stirred too and was now squinting at her sister rushing around her bedroom.

“Do you remember yesterday when you told me that bringing Waverly here just to piss off Daddy was a bad idea?” Wynonna paused, her eyes still wide as she stared at Nicole for acknowledgment. When she saw the sleepy redhead give her a nod, she did the same “Yeah, well, you were right. Shit has hit the fan.”

“Wait, what?” Nicole shot up from where she had been lying under her blankets next to Waverly. She glanced at her girlfriend then looked back at Wynonna with her own wide-eyed stare “What’s going on.”

“Let’s just get-” Wynonna tossed Waverly’s bag at her then moved to the bedroom window “-you outta here. I will figure out the rest later.”

“I’m not going to climb out of the-” Waverly squeaked in surprise when her protest was interrupted by Wynonna pulling her out of bed and onto her feet. 

“Oh good, you’re dressed. That saves time. Here-” Wynonna shoved some shoes into Waverly’s arms then motioned with her hand in a circle to indicate she wanted her to hurry.

“Of course I’m dressed” Waverly huffed as if she were a little offended by the insinuation from Wynonna. She shook it off quickly then motioned to the window “I’m also not climbing out of that window until you tell me what’s going on.”

Wynonna gritted her teeth and lifted her hands toward Waverly. She closed her hands slightly, as if she were squeezing her face, even if she wasn’t touching her. She shook her hands a few times out of frustration and growled “Just shut up for once in your life and listen to me.”

“Just tell us what’s going on while she puts on her shoes” Nicole offered, quickly crawling out of bed and putting a calming hand on Waverly’s shoulder to quell any sort of annoyed anger that might be rising in her.

“Momma is home” Wynonna rushed the words out under her breath.

“What?” All the color drained from Nicole’s face.

“Yeah, so-” Wynonna used both arms in a sweeping motion toward the window. 

“Why is that bad?” Waverly casted a confused glance at both sisters as she pushed her foot into a shoe.

“She will freak” Nicole nodded now that she understood the urgency from Wynonna.

“Why?” Waverly still didn’t understand. She put her second foot into her other shoe then glanced between the other girls again.

“She doesn’t really bullshit around and I am certain seeing you in her house will open an entirely new can of worms” Wynonna started shoving Waverly toward the window now that the girl had her shoes on.

“Stop” Waverly ducked out of the way and side stepped Wynonna. She back pedaled toward the bedroom door so she was out of reach. “I am going to leave through the front door and no one is going to stop me.”

“You’re wrong, I am going to stop you” Wynonna bull rushed Waverly. She was successful in surprising her and managed to throw Waverly over her shoulder. She held her there with one arm around her waist as she turned toward the window “Quick, open it so I can shove her out” She motioned to Nicole frantically.

“Stop, okay” Nicole moved between Wynonna and the window. “Let her go” She reached out and started to pry Wynonna’s arm off of Waverly. “Maybe it won’t be so bad. Maybe Momma won’t say anything.”

“Besides-” Waverly grunted as she pushed Wynonna away now that she had been released and set back on the floor. She brushed her messy hair off her eyes and gave a casual shrug “I kind of want to meet her.”

“What? Why?” Wynonna looked totally dumbfounded.

“She’s my mom” Waverly shrugged as if that was an obvious conclusion. She moved to the small desk in Nicole’s room and grabbed her coat off the back of the chair. She slid both arms into it then turned around and gave a nod. “We have to meet sometime, right? Why not rip the bandaid off?”

“She’s gonna flip” Wynonna shook her head quickly. “This is, like, a really bad idea.”

“She needs to do it” Nicole whispered, putting a calming hand on Wynonna’s shoulder as she stepped past her toward Waverly. She could see something familiar in her girlfriend’s eyes in that moment that she simply understood. That feeling deep inside that yearned to know where you came from. She gave a nod at that and smiled very softly at Waverly. “I get it.”

“Thank you” Waverly breathed out slightly in relief as she zipped up her coat. She then looked between the other two girls and nodded confidently. “Besides, it can’t really be that bad, can it? She’s the nice one out of the two, right?”

“Kinda” Nicole shrugged. “At least she bakes for me.”

“I’m not worried about you” Wynonna huffed as she folded her arms. “I am worried about the shit storm it’s going to unleash.”

“We’re already knee deep in shit without shoes, Wynonna” Waverly stated through an unamused sigh. “Might as well keep wading through until we reach the other side, right?”

“Oh, you said shit” Wynonna smirked at herself because she could not pass up the chance to give anyone a hard time. Ever. “So you do know how to cuss?”

Waverly rolled her eyes at that then turned and looked at Nicole. Her face softened and she gave a little nod “It’s gonna be alright. Just like you meeting your aunt.”

“Well that was an emotional trainwreck, but, yeah” Nicole shrugged it off and gave Waverly a nod. “Once the shock wears off I’m sure it’ll be fine.” Her tone wasn’t as confident as before but she was trying. She was sure that once the Earps knew that they had learned of their switch it was going to complicate things even further but at this point it was the last obstacle on their path to sorting everything out.

“So let’s just do it” Waverly shrugged before lifting onto her toes. She placed a gentle kiss to Nicole’s lips, smiling as she lowered back to her feet. “I will call you later today, okay?”

“It’s our funeral, but go ahead” Wynonna mumbled, motioning toward the door for Waverly to do whatever she wanted to do.

“You’ll be fine, drama queen” Waverly smirked, rolling her eyes at Wynonna as she turned and left the room.

“Drama queen? The nerve” Wynonna gasped then growled as her eyes narrowed into a scowl. 

“Get over it” Nicole laughed softly as she pushed Wynonna toward the door and they followed Waverly out into the hallway. They followed her until she hit the steps and then paused. Nicole watched nervously as Waverly walked ahead of them down into the lion’s den.

The argument between Michelle and Ward that had broken out that morning and alerted Wynonna to the fact that her mother was back had died down. Ward had stormed off to work and Michelle was now in the kitchen. Her ears perked up at the sound of a floorboard squeaking and she called out in that direction without looking away from the stove “You two get in here and tell me what has your father in a more piss poor mood than usual.”

Nicole and Wynonna were halfway down the stairs now, listening intently and ready to jump in just in case anything went sideways.

Waverly rounded the corner into the kitchen. She stood there timidly, looking at the woman who had given birth to her as if seeing her for the first time in her life. She felt a sudden rush of nausea and she thought for a split second that she might not have been ready for this. 

Before Waverly was able to flee, though, Michelle looked up because she could feel the presence of someone else in the room. She was turning away from the stove, putting the milk back into the fridge, as she lifted her eyes in that direction. When she was met with an unexpected sight she gasped and dropped the entire carton of milk on the floor. She stood there looking absolutely stunned. She felt her hands tremble. She didn’t blink. She just stared at Waverly as if she were afraid blinking would cause her to disappear.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. I was just on my way out and wanted to say-”

“My baby” Michelle burst into tears and rushed across the kitchen. She scooped Waverly into a tight embrace, sobbing as she held her “I have been looking forward to this day for twelve years.”

Nicole and Wynonna, who had sneaked all the way to the bottom of the stairs and stood just outside the kitchen now exchanged surprised glances. That had not been the reaction either of them had expected.

Waverly stiffened in the woman’s arms. She couldn’t really move, or breathe, because of the grip Michelle had on her so she just stood there awkwardly.

Michelle pulled back from the embrace after a few long moments. Her hands lifted to cup Waverly’s face and she smiled brightly even though she still had tears streaming down her face. “Finally” She whispered, nodding happily as she soaked in every last detail of her youngest daughter’s face. “Now our family can be set right.”

Nicole felt her heart drop. After all this time she thought that Michelle did actually love her but it seemed she had just been biding her time until her real daughter returned. She felt sick to her stomach. She had no idea until that very moment just how meaningless to the Earps she had been. She was a placeholder for the real thing. Not only had she been lied to for her entire life but they had been playing pretend until the day they could cast her aside for good. Just when she thought her world couldn’t crumble any further she was proven wrong. She wasn’t sure she had ever hurt this badly in her life and there was nothing she could do about it. She felt more alone and lost in that moment than ever before and she was starting to believe that moving forward was pointless. No one really wanted her so why should she even try?

She shook her head to fight off the wave of tears that had washed over her. She pushed away from the wall she had been leaning against and rushed past Wynonna toward the front door. She didn’t say anything. She just hurried to push her feet into some boots, grabbed her coat and the keys to Wynonna’s truck, then stormed out of the house.

~.~.~.~.~.


	14. “I'm starting to learn that if things are messy, or pieces don't get put back right, they are going to hurt, either way.”

“Wait, Nicole, where are you-” Before Wynonna could really grasp what was happening Nicole was gone. It seemed she had frozen in shock because she was unable to move for a few seconds. Then, her senses returned and she shook her head before moving toward the door.

“What happened?” The commotion of Nicole leaving had distracted Michelle just enough to allow Waverly to escape from her grip. She rushed from the older woman’s arms toward the front room just in time to see Wynonna scrambling to put her own boots on. “Where is she going?”

“I don’t know” Wynonna turned back and set a scowl on Michelle who stood right behind Waverly. “This is all your fault.” She growled the words at her mother as she pushed the door open and rushed after Nicole. She nearly tripped trying to get down to the stairs and over to the truck before her sister could speed away but she managed to catch her just in time. She grabbed hold of the mirror on the door and started to pound on the window urgently.

Nicole’s face was puffy and her eyes red from crying. She looked at Wynonna when she started pounding on the window and just shook her head. “GET OFF!”

“Come on, don’t do this!” Wynonna’s hand was already aching from her feverish pounding against the window. “Just calm down. Talk to me!”

“MOVE!” Nicole shouted through the window again. When it looked like Wynonna wasn’t going to budge she put the truck in reverse and started to pull backwards.

“Are you kidding me?” Wynonna grunted in surprise and started to backpedal alongside the truck. She kept her grip on the side mirror and hoped that Nicole was not upset enough to really take off and drag her along. She would die with her hand around that side mirror if she had to. She could not let Nicole run away in this state.

“Wynonna, I swear to god!” Nicole scowled through teary eyes when she realized the girl was not letting go. She shook her head angrily and moved the gear shift to drive. “Leave me alone!” She started to pull forward now, hoping Wynonna really wasn’t stupid enough to attempt to hang on.

“Don’t be an idiot!” Wynonna yelled through the glass, her right hand pounding the window again as her left hand held onto the side mirror for dear life. “Don’t let them win!”

Nicole had nearly gotten the truck to the exit of the Earp property with Wynonna hanging on the side of it. When she realized the girl was not letting go she nearly broke the gear shifter as she pushed it into park. She threw the driver’s side door open in a fury and rushed out of the truck toward Wynonna who had finally let go when she realized Nicole was stopping.

“Oh thank god” Wynonna sighed in relief as Nicole exited the truck. “Come on, just talk to me.”

“You heard her!” Nicole yelled as she rushed over to Wynonna like a bull rushing the red cape of a bullfighter. “She doesn’t want me! She never wanted me!” She shoved Wynonna in the chest with all her might. She was blinded by pain and anger and unfortunately she was taking it all out on the one person trying to help her.

“Woah” Wynonna stumbled backwards and nearly toppled over but managed to catch her balance. She could see how much pain Nicole was in and it was absolutely killing her. She lifted a hand toward the girl in a gesture of surrender before taking a few steps in her direction “That’s not true, alright? Calm down.”

“No!” Nicole’s voice cracked as she yelled again. “She never wanted me! No one has ever wanted me!” She felt herself starting to lose control so she turned around and hurried back to the truck.

Wynonna’s eyes widened when she saw Nicole fleeing again. She scrambled across the dirt as quickly as she could and caught the door of the truck right before Nicole could slam it closed. She reached in and grabbed onto her arm, tugging it, trying desperately to get her attention “Don’t leave. Don’t let them win, alright? Fuck them. You don’t need any of them.”

“Why should I stay?” Nicole used her right hand to try and pry Wynonna’s fingers off of her left arm. “I’ve always been a placeholder! Now that the truth is out no one cares if I leave!”

“I care!” Wynonna shoved Nicole with all her might. She threw the truck door completely open and gripped her sister with her left hand on Nicole’s left wrist and her right hand on her left shoulder. She held so tightly her knuckles immediately turned white. “I want you!” She jerked Nicole in her grip as she yelled the words “I fucking need you, alright? So don’t go.” Her voice cracked on the last of her words as tears started to stream down her face.

Seeing Wynonna crying seemed to break through the cloud of fury that had settled around Nicole. She blinked once, pushing the anger from her eyes, and came back to her senses. She shook her head quickly and shifted so she could wrap both arms around her sister tightly. She pulled her into a desperate embrace, as if she were holding on to the only thing keeping her from completely spiralling out of control.

“I fucking need you” Wynonna sobbed out against Nicole’s shoulder as her hands pulled again at the girl’s coat wherever she had managed to grip at the fabric. “Don’t you dare leave me, Nicole. I can’t do this without you.”

A new swell of emotion bubbled in Nicole’s throat and she nearly choked on it. She could barely see through all of her tears so she closed her eyes and just let them flow. “I hate them all for this” She cried out against the side of Wynonna’s face weakly. She was exhausted from all of this. She just wanted it all to go away.

“So do I” Wynonna mumbled as she pulled away from the embrace. She wiped at her eyes a few times to rid them of the last few tears. She hated crying. She hated seeing Nicole in pain. She hated every single adult involved in this mess. She let out a burdened sigh as her hands lifted to cup Nicole’s face. She fixed her eyes on the girl solidly and spoke firmly “You are my sister no matter what your blood says, okay? Don’t you ever doubt that for a second.”

Nicole nodded slightly in Wynonna’s hands. The words sparked a new wave of tears and they flowed freely down her cheeks.

Wynonna lifted onto her toes and titled Nicole’s head downward. She was able to place a gentle kiss to her forehead before pulling back from the girl completely. She stepped back so she was out of the doorway now and gave a single nod because she understood that Nicole needed some time to process everything and now that she wasn’t blindly upset, Wynonna would let her go. “Just come back, okay?”

Nicole gave another nod and pulled in a deep, sniffling inhale through her nose. She wiped at her eyes a few times before swallowing the lump in her throat “I love you, Wynonna.”

“Love you too, Patch” Wynonna’s lips curled into a sad, sideways attempt at a smile as she reached out and pushed the truck door closed. She took a few steps back so she was safely out of the way then watched as her sister put the truck in drive and pulled onto the road. She watched until she could no longer see the vehicle. Once Nicole was out of sight she turned back to the house. She clenched her jaw and stormed back in that direction with a fire in her eyes.

“Is she alright?” Waverly asked softly as soon as Wynonna reached the porch where she had stood and watched the exchange at the end of the driveway.

“You selfish, ungrateful piece of trash” Wynonna ignored Waverly and stormed right over to her mother who was standing just outside the front door. “You have no idea what you’ve done. I should-”

“Woah, hey, calm down” Waverly had moved quickly to step between Wynonna and Michelle. She fixed a gentle gaze on her sister and pushed very lightly against her chest in silent urging for her to back away. “It’s okay, Wynonna. Just take a breath and calm down.”

“It’s not okay!” Wynonna growled and pushed Waverly’s hand off her shoulder. “Don’t you see that none of this is okay? They’ve lied to all of us! For what?” Her eyes shifted from Waverly to Michelle as she posed her inquiry “What did you hope to accomplish with all of this? Did you purposely plan to watch their lives implode or is that just a talent that comes naturally to you?”

“You watch your tone with me young lady. You have no idea what you’re talking about” Michelle stiffened her stance and narrowed her eyes on her daughter. 

“No idea?” Wynonna gave a disgusted laugh as she motioned behind her blindly “I just watched the best person I know have her heart ripped from her chest by you. Tell me I have no idea again and I swear to-”

“You think I wanted this?” Michelle shouted as she took a step toward Wynonna, almost as if she were daring her to keep berating her. “None of this was my choice, Wynonna.” Her eyes shifted for a brief second to look at Waverly. She then stepped back and drew in a deep breath to try and calm herself down. She motioned between her two girls and gave a shake of her head “I wanted us all to be a family. I wanted to set something up, make arrangements of sorts, to allow Nicole and Waverly to grow up together.” She let out a tired sounding sigh as her defensiveness faded and her face now softened with sadness in her eyes “I wasn’t the selfish one in this. That’d be your daddy.”

Wynonna immediately deflated and looked stunned.

Waverly blinked once, stared blankly at Michelle for a few seconds, then breathed out a soft “What?”

Michelle gave a nod then motioned with her arm for the girls to follow her as she turned and opened the door “Let’s have some breakfast and I’ll tell you everything you want to know.”

Wynonna and Waverly glanced at each other with confusion before looking back at their mother who was already through the door. “What about Nicole?” Wynonna asked softly, again gesturing behind herself blindly toward where the girl had driven away.

“You wanna go after her?” Michelle asked once inside. She gestured back out the way they had come and nodded “I don’t blame you. Go find her. I will gladly sit down with her and lay it all out on the table. I ain’t trying to hide the truth any longer.”

Wynonna was thoroughly surprised by how willing Michelle seemed to be about telling the truth. It was almost too easy. She wasn’t sure it could be trusted. But, she also knew Nicole needed some time and space and she knew the girl wouldn’t do anything irrational so she might as well hear her mother’s side of the story so she could fill Nicole in once she returned.

“Fine” She finally relented with a shrug and gestured for Waverly to go ahead of her as they moved toward the kitchen. She moved right over to the coffee pot, grabbing mugs from the cupboard above her, and fixing a couple cups. Once she was done she turned around and set one cup in front of Waverly before taking her own and sitting next to the girl. She looked at Michelle with an eyebrow raised on her forehead skeptically and nodded at her just once “I’m all ears.”

“This is weird” Waverly stated out loud to herself more than anything. She nodded in agreement then moved to stand. “I think I should go.”

“Sit” Wynonna reached out without looking and grabbed onto Waverly’s arm. She tugged at her until she sat again. “Sorry to break it to you but this is as much your business as anyone else’s and if I have to sit here and listen to it than you damn well better believe you do, too.”

“Please, honey, stay” Michelle spoke sweetly, offering a smile to her youngest daughter.

“Could you not call me honey?” Waverly asked, wrinkling her nose in disliking as she reached for the sugar for her coffee since it was obvious she was being held hostage through this conversation. “It’s weird. No offense but I don’t really know you yet. I mean, I want to know you, but I don’t yet so…” She shrugged sadly and looked into her coffee as she stirred it.

Michelle looked heartbroken but she didn’t argue. She just gave the girl a nod of acknowledgment before settling back in her seat. She drew in a deep breath, glanced between both her daughters a few times, then pushed a smile onto her lips “Okay, what do you want to know?”

~.~.~.~.~.

Nicole let out a heavy exhale as she watched her feet dangling freely above the dirt. She was sitting on the open tailgate of the truck, silently, mulling everything over. It was late morning now and the sun was starting to heat the air around her. She still felt cold, though. It was as though reality was starting to sink in and she felt as though she was a shell of her former self. It was a lot to take in and she wondered if she would ever be able to get over it.

She sat in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by trees and wildlife, on the banks of her favorite lake. The water lay still, untouched by anything but the glistening sunlight above. She felt at peace here. It was one of the only places around her that didn’t immediately fill her with sadness. Plus, the color of the water reminded her of Waverly which was one of the few pleasant things she was clinging to in her life.

The silence around her was broken by the sound of a footstep behind her. She felt her heart leap into her throat out of fright as she turned around in the direction she had heard the footstep. When she saw who was approaching, she let out a relieved sigh and put a hand to her heart “You scared the shit out of me.”

Wynonna smirked in amusement but didn’t say anything. Now that she knew Nicole was aware of her presence she walked a little faster until she was next to the truck. She leaned her left arm on top of the side of the truck bed and set her eyes on her sister “You alright?”

“No” Nicole answered sharply as her eyes moved over the peaceful lake again. She thought for a moment before glancing over at Wynonna again “How did you find me?”

“When you were eight we came camping out here” Wynonna started as she moved around the end of the truck now that she knew Nicole was not going to push her away. “Daddy was all up Willa’s butt, catering to her and making sure she had a good time. He made you and I share that shitty tent that was barely holding on by a thread” She nodded as she lifted herself up onto the tailgate of the truck so she was now sitting next to her sister “You told me that even though Daddy ignored you the entire trip you still had fun because I was there. Then we made a promise that when we ran away from home this is where we would meet.”

“You remember that?” Nicole looked genuinely surprised. They had been kids and it had been years ago. She didn’t think Wynonna was sentimental enough to remember something like that.

“Of course” Wynonna shrugged as if it were no big deal as her eyes moved over the lake now that she was comfortable.

Nicole managed to smile as her hand reached out to take hold of one of Wynonna’s in a silent gesture of appreciation toward her older sister.

“I won’t lie, I had to be reminded where exactly the lake was because it’s been eight years since I’ve been out here, but…” Wynonna laughed very lightly and glanced at Nicole with a wry smirk on her lips ...it’s the thought that counts, right?”

Again Nicole managed to smile. She looked to her left to see Wynonna grinning at her playfully and this caused her to laugh softly. She reached out and gave her a soft shove before shaking her head in amusement “I’ll let it slide this time, I guess.”

Wynonna smirked and scooted closer to her sister. She reached out and put her hand on her back, patting a few times lightly, before dropping her hand away completely. She was quiet for a moment as she thought over everything she had learned from her mother. She drew in a deep breath and as she let it out her eyes fell to her feet “Momma explained everything.”

Nicole just rolled her eyes. She wasn’t sure she could trust the woman any further than she could throw her. “No need to explain. I was her replacement baby.”

“Apparently Ward lied to her,” Wynonna stated as if that should be no surprise. “He was determined to get the DNA test because he believed you weren’t his because of your flaming red hair” She smirked, giving her sister a nudge “When the results came back that you didn’t match either of them he was blinded by rage and vengeance. He wanted to sue the hospital. He wanted to swap you two back. Got all the biggest, fanciest attorneys he could rustle up.”

Nicole shook her head in disgust. She hated that she was learning just how despicable Ward Earp really was.

“Long story short there were a lot of doctors and lawyers involved. Then the accident came up…” Wynonna dropped her eyes to where Nicole was holding her hand. The more they talked about what had happened the worse it seemed. She hated that Nicole had lost her real parents because she definitely deserved to be loved and cherished by them. “Child Protective Services was called in to evaluate him as a father. With Momma being on the road a lot there were concerns that we weren’t in the best hands.”

“No shit” Nicole grumbled and glanced at Wynonna. “I don’t remember CPS poking around. Do you?”

“Not really” Wynonna gave a little shrug. “But apparently someone was able to get the case closed. Bribes or deals were made, Momma still isn’t totally sure of all the details” She lifted her eyes from their hands and offered a crooked, half smile to her sister “He never ceases to amaze me with the shady shit he’s able to pull off.”

“So how did they come to the conclusion that we shouldn’t be swapped back?” Nicole huffed in frustration at the entire ordeal.

“A deal was struck, I guess. CPS would drop the case if the dickhead agreed to both not suing the hospital and keeping the child he already had and raising it as his own.” Wynonna shrugged again and shook her head “It was either lose all of his kids or raise the one he was given. He knew Momma would probably leave his ass if he lost us so he agreed but only if they got a settlement from the hospital for pain and suffering or some shit and the steps were taken to bury the mix up, the accident, and the CPS case forever.”

“Every adult in this Hell hole is complete shit” Nicole sighed out angrily with a slight shake of her head. Maybe she was naive but she had always thought adults were decent people. They had to be, right? They were the ones in charge of caring for and teaching children. But she was starting to realize her generation would probably be as screwed up and manipulative as the generation before them because of the fact that they were raised by terrible people.

“Pretty much” Wynonna shrugged in agreement as she glanced at her sister. “I’m not trying to defend any of them, because that is so not my style, but there were a few adults that were looking out for you back then. Unfortunately, money and power prevailed in the end.”

A curious eyebrow lifted slowly on Nicole’s forehead as she looked at Wynonna as if she could not believe what had just come out of her mouth. She stared at her in shock for a few seconds before she snorted in disapproval and shook her head “I can’t believe you’re buying their bullshit.”

“I’m not” Wynonna’s brow creased into a deep frown as she looked at her sister completely offended. “I am just saying that maybe you should consider that not everyone involved had malicious intentions.”

Nicole shook her head at that and looked back over the lake. She was quiet for a moment before she finally snorted out in disapproval “I should have known you’d take Momma Earp’s side. The Earps, afterall, are a prideful family where reputation means more than anything.”

“I’m gonna chalk that comment up to the fact that you’ve been emotionally beaten and battered the last couple days but-” Wynonna was growling through gritted teeth as she scowled at Nicole “-If you actually think for one second I’d side with her over you just because we’re blood then we have bigger issues here.”

Nicole could see how upset Wynonna was by what she had said. She immediately deflated and let out a sad sounding sigh “You’re right, I’m sorry. I just…” She lifted her shoulders in a shrug and held them there for a few seconds before shaking her head as a defeated huff of a breath left her mouth “...I think I’m in self-preservation mode or something. I’m second guessing everything and everyone I’ve ever known.” She frowned and reached out to lay a hand on Wynonna’s forearm “That’s not fair to you. You’ve been surprisingly supportive and cool through all of this.”

“Surprisingly” Wynonna grumbled, making a clicking sound with her tongue as her head shook. “That’s rude. You know I’ve always had your back when it matters most, Patch.”

Nicole nodded a few times but didn’t speak. She felt a lump starting to form in her throat and she was afraid she was going to start crying again. She was already so sick of crying.

“Hey, none of that” Wynonna could see the emotion in Nicole’s face and she gave a quick shake of her head as her hand reached out to offer a comforting touch against her back. “We’re cool, okay? You and I will always be cool. So no more tears” She smiled in an attempt to get Nicole to do the same. “We need to Earp the Hell up and figure out how we are gonna handle all of this now.”

Nicole shook her head and wiped a stray tear from her eye. She offered her best crooked smile but it barely managed to lift at the corners of her lips. “I don’t know how to handle any of this, Wynonna. This is not something a teenager should have to handle.”

“You’re right about that” Wynonna huffed in disgust at the fact that they really were right in the middle of all of this now. Like what kind of people do this? She let out a sigh at the thought and focused back on Nicole with a nod “But, look, now we know. So I say we put ourselves in charge. We decide what happens next. Whether you want to move out and totally disown Michelle and Ward or if you want to change your name completely and run away to a hippie town and pretend none of this happened…” She smirked in amusement at herself and nudged at Nicole to try and get the girl to laugh “...the balls are in your hands or whatever the saying is.”

Nicole couldn’t help but laugh at Wynonna’s botched attempt at the idiom. She rolled her eyes in amusement and used her elbow to nudge at her sister’s ribs “That’s not how the saying goes and I know you know that. You just wanted an excuse to make a joke about me not liking balls in my hands.”

Wynonna gasped as if she had just heard the most foul accusation ever cast upon her. She stared in horror for a few seconds before she finally laughed out. “Damn it. I should have known you were too smart to fall for that.”

Nicole chuckled again lightly and slid her arm around Wynonna’s shoulders. She pulled the girl into a sideways hug and squeezed tightly for a few seconds. When she released her sister her face still held a smile. “Thanks for making me laugh. I needed that.”

“If there is one thing you can always count on from me it’s my ability to get a laugh outta you” Wynonna nodded proudly at that as her arm slid around her sister’s waist. The two of them sat there quietly for a few moments, arms loosely draped around the other, taking a moment to appreciate the other’s company. It was growing more apparent by the day just how deeply they needed one another if they wanted to survive this ordeal.

After a minute or so of silent contemplation, Nicole pulled back from her sister. She gave her a curious look and tilted her head to the side “Wait, how did you get here if I have your truck?”

“You already know the answer to that” Wynonna laughed as she spoke the words and pushed herself off the tailgate of the truck. She gave her sister a little nod then motioned behind her “She is waiting very patiently to see if you’re alright and to probably make googly eyes at you” She rolled her eyes as if that were super annoying. The truth was she couldn’t quite decide how she felt about it all but, given everything else, it was the least of her priorities. “So if you don’t mind giving me my truck back? You two can stay out here and look at each other for the rest of your lives for all I care but I would really like to be-”

Nicole cut Wynonna off by throwing her truck keys at her without warning. She smirked when her sister swore and nearly dropped the keys. She hopped down off the tailgate then turned to push it back into place. After it was secured, she turned and offered Wynonna a warm, genuine smile “Thank you for coming. I know all of this is probably like your worst nightmare or something.”

Wynonna shrugged as she moved past Nicole. There weren't really words to describe her thoughts and feelings about it all so she wouldn’t even start trying. She moved to the driver’s side door and paused, glancing at her sister now. The small smile she held turned slowly into a smirk as she spoke “Don’t forget to use protection.”

“You’re obnoxious” Nicole rolled her eyes and tried to act upset but the blush on her cheeks gave away the fact that Wynonna had gotten to her. She let out a heavy sigh and stepped away from the truck as her sister climbed inside and started the engine. She waited until Wynonna glanced into the mirror to make sure she was clear of the truck before lifting her hand and flipping her older sister off.

Wynonna gasped, then laughed, before putting the truck in drive and guiding it down the small path toward the road.

As Nicole stood there alone for a few moments she realized she was wearing her pjs from the night before. Her hair was still a mess, her eyes were red from crying, and she was wearing boots that weren’t hers. She pulled her coat around herself a little tighter and suddenly felt insecure. What if something had changed in Waverly and things were different now? What if this was all too much for her? She wouldn’t blame the girl if she wanted some space, too. All of this was basically unbearable and Nicole wouldn’t be surprised if Waverly needed some time alone to sort it all out.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the rocks on the path being crunched under the wheel of a vehicle. She looked up to see Waverly’s car being guided up the path toward the lake. She felt her heart flutter ever so slightly when the girl behind the wheel smiled at her.

“Are you alright?” Waverly asked as soon as she had turned off her engine and gotten out of her car. “I’ve been worried sick.”

“No” Nicole admitted before shrugging it off and giving her girlfriend a crooked smile. “I’m sorry. I think things just all hit me at once and-”

“You don’t have to explain” Waverly whispered as she approached Nicole now that she knew the girl would not push her away. She reached out and placed a hand on each one of Nicole’s forearms. She gave her a very gentle smile when their eyes met and nodded “I get it, okay? All of this is just….” She flipped one of her hands off to the side dismissively before shrugging “...well I don’t really have a word for what all of this is.”

“Fucked” Nicole mumbled through a pout as her hands reached out now to gently come to rest on Waverly’s waist.

“Well, yeah, that is definitely one word to describe it” Waverly agreed with a soft laugh. She stepped closer to Nicole and moved her hands, sliding them up her girlfriend’s arms to her shoulders. “Unfair is another word that comes to mind.”

Nicole gave a single nod of agreement as her hands moved around Waverly’s waist to her back. She pulled gently, wanting to feel her girlfriend’s body pressed into hers even just the tiniest bit. She hadn’t broken her gaze with Waverly since their eyes had first met. It comforted her to be sharing this with the only other person that totally understood what she was feeling. “A mess. I know that is technically two words but messy just doesn’t seem to work.”

“A huge fucking mess” Waverly smiled in agreement as she took the final step in order to close the gap between herself and Nicole completely. She moved her hands off her girlfriend’s shoulders to the back of her neck now, letting her fingers play loosely in the short strands of hair she found there. “It’s hard to focus on how we even start moving forward.”

Nicole felt goosebumps lift on the back of her neck near where Waverly toyed with her hair. She drew in a trembling breath and nodded just slightly at the words even though she was now totally distracted by what her girlfriend was doing. Her eyes fluttered then drew closed before she leaned forward and gently placed her forehead against Waverly’s “I want to escape all of this, even if it’s only temporary. I need to get away, remove myself from this reality, and just remind myself that there is still a life out there to strive for.”

Waverly nodded very slightly against Nicole’s forehead. She understood the urge all too clearly. She moved her fingers deeper into her girlfriend’s hair and spoke in a whisper “Take me with you.”

Nicole smiled very slightly as her eyes came open. She pulled back from Waverly just enough to be able to clearly focus on her face. “Wouldn’t that be nice? Just the two of us, alone, not having to think about all of this craziness for a while.”

“I’m serious” Waverly’s eyes opened and met Nicole’s soft gaze with a determined one of her own. “Why not?”

Nicole was surprised and it showed as her smile dropped and her eyes widened. “What?”

“I mean” Waverly shrugged and took a slight step back from Nicole. She threw her arm to the side in a sort of casual shrugging motion “Why can’t we just kind of, you know, get away for awhile? What’s stopping us?”

“School?” Nicole gestured with her hand toward nowhere in particular to indicate toward the establishment. “Our families and friends?”

“Aren’t our families kind of the problem right now?” Waverly gave her head a shake as she spoke. “School will still be there. We both get good enough grades that a week off isn’t going to hurt. I mean, think about it…” She took a step back toward Nicole, a smile slowly moving over her lips, as her hand reached out in search of one of her girlfriend’s “...you and me, together, alone. No one around telling us another lie about our lives. It would give us some time to really digest everything and figure out what we want to do next.”

Nicole had to admit she liked the sound of the plan. Plus, Waverly’s excitement was kind of contagious. She was having a hard time not throwing caution to the wind and just going against all rationale. She looked down at where her hand was intertwined with her girlfriend’s and she felt her heart flutter. Some time away could really help. They had worked so well as lab partners that it was easy to assume they’d be able to work well through this mess together, too. Plus, the idea of just being alone with Waverly was more alluring than she dared admit. It was definitely a scenario she had daydreamed about more times than she could count.

Waverly lifted a curious eyebrow as she watched Nicole silently mull it over. She could see that her girlfriend was seriously contemplating the idea. She smiled very softly and gave a light squeeze of the hand she held before stepping closer again. “Just a week. You and I find someplace to be alone with our thoughts for one week. That should be enough to at least get our heads on straight and come up with a plan.”

Nicole nodded slightly as her eyes lifted from their hands to meet Waverly’s hopeful gaze. She couldn’t help the crooked, goofy grin that spread over her lips when she saw the way her girlfriend was waiting, patiently, for her to agree. Her heart fluttered in her chest. She honestly couldn’t believe this was really happening. Waverly Jones, no Earp, whatever, the girl of her dreams, was staring at her waiting for her to agree to run away with her.

“Where would we go?” She managed to ask through a dreamy sigh that indicated that she had caved into her girlfriend’s silent urgings.

“Anywhere!” Waverly could barely contain her excitement. She bounced on her toes just once and threw her arms around Nicole’s shoulders. She pulled her into an excited embrace, letting out a gleeful giggle, before pulling back again. She was grinning ear to ear as she looked happily at her girlfriend “Wherever you want to go as long as no one can find us.”

Nicole couldn’t help but to laugh at how happy and bouncy Waverly was at the moment. Her infectious personality was one of the many things that Nicole found completely irresistible. “I haven’t really thought about it. I have no idea!”

“Oh come on” Waverly rolled her eyes at that because she didn’t believe it for a second. Nicole was a thinker. She always had something going on in her mind and Waverly was confident that included a list of dream vacation spots.

“Well” Nicole blushed slightly from having been called out. So maybe she had, kind of, thought of a few places she would like to go with Waverly but she didn’t want to seem too eager about it. “There is one place that has kind of always been on my bucket list, but…”

“But what?” Waverly was still smiling. She just could not contain her joy at the moment.

“It kind of requires money” Nicole bit her lip nervously at that because, well, she knew she didn’t really have any money to spend and she didn’t expect Waverly had much either.

“Oh” Waverly deflated ever so slightly for the first time since Nicole had agreed to go away with her. She twisted her lips into a sideways pucker and creased her brow as she thought about it. Her mind raced for a few moments before she looked back at Nicole. Her thoughtful face melted away and she was smiling again effortlessly “I have an idea.”

“Of somewhere to go?” Nicole looked surprised because Waverly had barely seemed phased by the little hitch in their plan to escape.

“No” Waverly shook her head and moved now toward her car. When she reached the driver’s side door, she looked back at Nicole and smiled. “I know where we can get as much money as we want.”

“What?” Nicole let out a laugh of disbelief as she moved toward the car too since it seemed like they were now leaving. “How?”

“I think…” Waverly paused and nodded a few times slowly as her eyes took on a far off look and she once more slipped into a deep contemplation. It only lasted for a few seconds and when she looked back at Nicole she smiled again more confidently than before “...you remember last night when Wynonna paid for the pizza with Ward’s card?”

“Yeah…” Nicole’s eyes narrowed curiously as she tried to decide what her girlfriend was implying. As she examined her suspiciously she felt a knot settle in her stomach because the way Waverly had just looked was far too similar to the way Wynonna looked when she was cooking up a mischievous plan. That was never a good thing. “Wait, aren’t you going to tell me what you’re thinking?” She asked in a panic when she realized Waverly was suddenly getting into the car in a hurry.

“What?” Waverly asked with a laugh as she started her car and looked over at Nicole with a bright smile “Don’t you trust me?”

“Well, I mean, yeah” Nicole huffed out as she pulled her seatbelt across her body. “But that look in your eyes just now…” She motioned to her own eyes then shook her head with a slight laugh, as if she couldn’t believe what she had just seen “...you looked exactly like Wynonna when she’s doing something she shouldn’t and it was totally terrifying.”

Waverly bit her lip to fight her smile from growing as she started to back her car out of the small clearing in the woods. She was quiet for a moment as she concentrated on what she was doing. Once she was finally back on a paved road, she looked over at Nicole with a curious look on her face “I look like Wynonna?”

“Sometimes” Nicole admitted, biting her lip nervously because she didn’t really know how Waverly would feel about that.

“Interesting” Waverly stated with a nod as her eyes focused back on the road. She checked to make sure she was cleared to pull into the lane then glanced at Nicole with a mischievous grin that once more looked frighteningly similar to Wynonna’s. She gave a single nod before putting her car into drive and heading back toward Purgatory.

Nicole wasn’t sure what Waverly had in mind but it was kind of comforting to know that her girlfriend and her sister were actually related because it meant that, no matter what, she was in good hands and at this point that was not something she was going to take for granted.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.


	15. “Being young doesn’t mean we don’t have the capacity to love another person with everything we have.”

“How did you rope Wynonna into this?” Nicole looked half curious and half impressed at Waverly sitting in the driver seat of her car as they waited in one of the numerous dark and shady alleys that Purgatory had to offer.

“It wasn’t that hard” Waverly shrugged it off and checked her rearview mirror. She then looked over at Nicole and smiled “As soon as I told her the plan she told me to shut up and left the room. I thought she was going to go find you and talk you out of it, honestly. But she came back with a duffle bag full of stuff and told me to meet her here.”

“Why?” Nicole closed her eyes and huffed the question out with a shake of her head. She wanted to be annoyed, or surprised, but she wasn’t. She was baffled. Wynonna somehow still managed to surprise her with all the little things she had up her sleeves. “You know what?” She opened her eyes and looked at Waverly with a relenting shrug “I don’t want to know.”

Waverly laughed softly and looked in her rearview mirror again. When she didn’t see anything she shrugged and glanced at Nicole “I think she’s just excited to be sneaking around doing unsavory things.”

“You say that like she’s a criminal” Nicole grumbled and folded her arms as she slid down against her seat. She knew her sister definitely got into questionable situations but she didn’t like someone who barely knew her making the assumptions that she wasn’t a good person because of it.

“Not what I meant by that at all” Waverly’s brows curled together in a frown. “I just meant that she’s mischievous. She likes things like this, you know? Dark alleys and mysterious duffle bags.”

“How would you know what she likes?” Nicole sat up a little now and set a scowl on Waverly. “You couldn’t stand her like a week ago and now you know everything about her?”

“Woah” Waverly lifted a hand at Nicole and stared at her firmly “I have no idea where this animosity is coming from. I haven’t done anything wrong. I thought you’d enjoy the fact that Wynonna and I aren’t bickering about this.”

“You’re right. Shit” Nicole exhaled and slumped back into her seat. “I’m so on edge right now it’s like I keep forgetting which way is up.” She pouted her lips at Waverly and batted her eyes just once “I’m sorry.”

Waverly reached over and put her hand on Nicole’s knee. She offered her a tender, sympathetic smile before nodding just slightly “It doesn’t help that you haven’t eaten today.”

“Yeah I was going to grab something when we stopped by the Homestead but…” Nicole sighed and put her hand over Waverly’s “...Michelle was still there and Ward showed up and I had to climb out my fricken bedroom window to escape without them seeing me so, you know, didn’t get the chance.”

“Lucky for you I always have snacks” Waverly brightened up a bit and leaned across the car to open the glove box near Nicole’s knees. She reached in and produced a granola bar without much effort. She sat upright and presented it with a smile “I know it’s not a pop-tart, but it should do the trick.”

Nicole blushed when Waverly mentioned the pop-tart. It was such a silly little thing that they shared but it meant a lot to her. It was somehow the anchor of their connection and she had a feeling the mention of the breakfast snack would always give her butterflies. She let out a happy sigh at the thought as she took the granola bar “I guess I will have to make do. Thank you.”

“You’re very welcome” Waverly blushed as well and bit her lower lip as her eyes lingered on Nicole’s. Again they let a moment of genuine, unmuddled human connection remind them both that there were good things outside the whirlwind of shit that was currently encircling their lives.

Suddenly a loud knock on the passenger side window broke the silence. 

Both girls screamed out in fright. Nicole turned and when she saw who it was she scowled through the glass as she rolled down the window. “You scared the Hell out of us.”

“Did I interrupt another googly eye session?” Wynonna smirked proudly as she leaned onto her forearm where the window had disappeared into the door.

Nicole rolled her eyes as she unwrapped the granola bar.

“Tell me something” Wynonna squatted slightly to be able to see across the cab to where Waverly sat “Do you two practice those googly eyes or do they come naturally?”

“Will you just shut up” Nicole growled and pushed Wynonna’s face out of the open window. “What are we doing here?”

“I’d be nicer to me if I were you” Wynonna mocked Nicole’s annoyance before laughing it off and pointing to the back of the car where the duffle bag she had given Waverly earlier was sitting. “Everything you need to go off the grid is in that bag. I’ve had it packed for years just hoping the day would come that you’d get sick of Ward and wanna skip town.” She once more smiled proudly at her sister then motioned with a flick of a couple fingers toward Waverly “Kinda wish I was going with you but I get it. I can’t compete with true love or whatever.”

“Shut up!” Nicole yelped out, half embarrassed and half irritated, as a red blush lit her cheeks like a wave crashing over her. She glanced at Waverly hoping beyond hope Wynonna hadn’t just ruined this entire trip with her loud mouth before she glanced back at her sister “You still haven’t told me why we had to meet in this alley.”

“Dramatic effect” Wynonna shrugged casually as she reached into the window and snatched the granola bar right out of Nicole’s hand just as she was lifting it to her mouth for a bite.

“Hey!” Nicole tried to take the snack back but Wynonna pushed a palm into her forehead and held her at arm's length while she turned away from her and took a huge bite.

Waverly was trying really hard not to be amused but seeing these two interact was hilarious. Blood or not, there was no question they were sisters through and through. She let out a happy sigh then dipped her head so she was able to see Wynonna through the passenger window “Thank you for your help. I really appreciate it.”

Wynonna’s face curled in disgust. Her cheeks were puffed out, full of granola. She had stopped chewing now and was staring at the little bit of remaining bar in her hand. She then leaned over slightly, opened her mouth, and let the chewed up chunks tumble out onto the ground. Once her mouth was empty she tipped her hand over and dumped the last bit of the bar onto the ground as well. She then spat, wiped a hand across her mouth, then squatted to look through the window again. She looked completely appalled as she motioned to the ground below her “What was that monstrosity I just had in my mouth?”

“Not the first time you’ll ask that question in your life” Nicole mumbled with a satisfied smirk on her lips. Served her right for taking her food.

Waverly laughed at Nicole’s remark before shaking her head “A sugar-free granola bar.”

“Ew, why would anyone take sugar out of anything? People need to add MORE sugar to things!” Wynonna wiped her mouth again then shook her head in disgust.

“Can we focus?” Nicole sat up more in her seat and motioned behind her. “What’s in the bag?”

“I told you” Wynonna shrugged as she stood now and reached into the pocket of her jeans. She fished out a small set of keys then tossed them into the window. “Everything you need.”

Nicole caught the keys and blinked just once in surprise. They were keys small enough to fit the lock on the zipper of the duffle bag. She was still confused. She looked back up at Wynonna and shrugged “Is it legal?”

Wynonna snorted out a laugh at that “You know the answer to that already.” She pushed her hands into the pocket of her coat and leaned down once more. She had a more serious look on her face now as she set her eyes on Nicole. “Just come back, okay?”

“It’s only a week” Nicole whispered softly, slightly alarmed at how seriously Wynonna was looking at her. “I promise.”

Wynonna let her gaze linger on Nicole for just a few more seconds, as if silently reminding the girl that she really, really needed her to come back. She then gave a satisfied nod and shifted her eyes to Waverly. She pointed at her firmly, knitting her brows together in a stern glare “Take care of my sister, new sister.”

“This is so weird” Waverly mumbled with a slight shake of her head. All of it would take some time to adjust to. She didn’t really know what to say to Wynonna calling her sister so she gave an awkward finger gun and a wink “Totes.”

“That was gross. Never do that again” Wynonna looked like she had just taken a whiff of something foul and shook her head slightly as she looked back at Nicole. She leaned into the window and kissed the side of her head before pulling back, using her hand to swat at the back of Nicole’s head, then standing up completely. “Bye, lovebirds.”

Nicole groaned and rubbed the spot on her head where Wynonna had swatted her as she watched her sister walk back to her truck that she had parked behind them in the alley. She shook her head slightly and glanced at Waverly with a single eyebrow raised in surprise and curiosity “So that was weird. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize” Waverly laughed as she reached for her keys and started her engine. “All of this is weird but we will get used to it.”

“Hopefully” Nicole grumbled as she pulled her seatbelt on then looked at Waverly with a shrug. “Now what?”

“Now you tell me where we’re going” Waverly grinned as she put her car into drive and started out of the alley slowly. “But first, let's grab you some lunch before you turn into Hangry Hangry Haught again. That was scary.”

“Hangry Hangry Haught?” Nicole huffed out a laugh at that. She couldn’t believe Waverly would say such a thing. “First of all, it is not my fault I get hangry! Besides, better you find out now when it was just a mild case. You really don’t wanna see me when I’m starving.” She smirked in amusement at that. She was mild mannered and patient but when she was really hungry she was kind of a bitch. “Secondly, don’t call me Haught.” She deflated a bit, sounding sad as she spoke “I’m not ready for that yet.”

“I’m sorry” Waverly frowned, reaching over to put her hand on Nicole’s knee as she guided the car down the road. “I was only joking. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“You didn’t” Nicole whispered, putting her hand over Waverly’s. “It’s just, well, not to overuse the word but, weird.”

“I know what you mean” Waverly agreed, turning her hand over so her fingers could slide between Nicole’s. She gave her hand a squeeze and nodded “Michelle called me honey this morning and it really freaked me out.”

Nicole nodded and looked down at where their hands were intertwined on her knee. She didn’t want to think about this anymore. That was the entire point of their getaway. She shook it off and looked back at Waverly “How about we don’t talk about this for a few hours? Let’s just get some food and hit the road. We can listen to the radio and play road trip games and just enjoy being teenagers for awhile.”

“I’ve always known you were brilliant” Waverly smiled at Nicole, giving her hand another squeeze in silent agreement to the plan. If they didn’t allow themselves some time to just be teenagers then she wasn’t sure they’d be able to get through any of this without a total meltdown. 

~.~.~.~.~.

They had been on the road a few hours now and it was going well. They were chatting and laughing and finally letting the chaos of their lives disappear behind them as they moved further and further away from Purgatory. The idea to just get away for a little while was already the best idea in the history of ideas.

“I have to know something” Nicole had her bare feet kicked up on the dashboard from her slouched position in her seat. She was fidgeting with the keys Wynonna had tossed at her before they left. She hadn’t dared open the duffle bag yet.

“What would you like to know?” Waverly asked casually, glancing at her passenger with a smile.

“Have you ever seen pictures of my parents?” Nicole’s voice was soft, the words coming out in a nervous tremble.

Waverly slight smile faded. She felt her heart drop to her toes. She had not expected the turn in conversation so quickly “I am not avoiding the question but I thought we weren’t talking about BabyGate for a while.”

“BabyGate?” Nicole cast a curious glance at her girlfriend.

Waverly shrugged and looked at Nicole with a look that challenged Nicole to come up with something else to call their situation.

Nicole shook her head in amusement before looking back down at the small keys she held between her fingers “I guess now that I’m not being bombarded with new revelation after new revelation all my unanswered questions are screaming at me.”

Waverly gave a tiny nod because she understood all too well. Her head was full of more inquiries about her own life than she could count. She sighed at that and once more glanced at her passenger clearing her throat “Let’s make a deal, okay? We can talk about it now, or whenever, but if it becomes too much and we feel overwhelmed again, either of us, we just use a safe word to let the other person know the conversation needs to pause.”

“A safe word?” Nicole sat up a little in her seat, pulling her feet off the dash and putting them on the floor.

“A word or phrase that, once spoken, means the subject is dropped, no questions asked. No hurt feelings or anything like that.” Waverly glanced curiously at Nicole “Does that sound fair?”

Nicole nodded quickly “Like a ripcord. Pull it and a parachute opens so you’re now falling safely to the ground instead of in a death spiral.” 

Waverly laughed at the analogy “A nice, calming escape from the feeling of inevitable doom.”

“I like that idea,” Nicole agreed with a smile.

“Me too” Waverly looked fully at Nicole with a smile of her own. She let her eyes linger on her a moment before finally looking back to the road. “So what’s the safe word?”

The two of them fell quiet as they thought about something they could say that would not be mistaken in conversation for anything other than the safe word.

“How about…” Waverly spoke gently after a few seconds of silent contemplation “...tacos are tasty?”

“Tacos are tasty?” Nicole let out an amused laugh as she eyed Waverly curiously. “Not that I’m complaining I’m just wondering where that came from?”

“I figured it’s pretty specific and can’t be mistaken as part of a BabyGate conversation” Waverly stated plainly with a shrug. She glanced at Nicole and when she saw the girl looking at her as if she wasn’t sold on her answer, she blushed and added “And I’m kind of hungry.”

Nicole smirked in amusement and gave a nod as she settled back against her seat again “It is nearly dinner time.”

“I just saw a sign for a mexican restaurant back there” Waverly gestured behind them. “It’s on the same exit as our destination so I figured why not?”

“Agreed” Nicole smiled widely as her hand reached across the car and gently came to rest on Waverly’s knee. “We should totally eat something before we check in.”

“You still haven’t told me where we are going” Waverly mumbled as if she were annoyed in an attempt to hide how curious she was.

“It’s a surprise” Nicole shrugged then glanced at the GPS on her phone. “Just follow the directions I gave you.”

“Aye aye” Waverly gave a playful salute then checked her mirror before switching lanes. She had to admit she was excited about being on an unknown adventure with Nicole. The girl continued to surprise and captivate her and she was completely enthralled by the thrill of it all.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

“We are all set!” Waverly skipped happily toward where Nicole was leaning against her car waiting for her. She smiled widely as she approached and lifted the keycard she held as if proving what she had said was true. “Room 5.”

“You really shouldn’t have paid for the room. We could have split it” Nicole grumbled as she pushed off the car and grabbed onto the luggage they had packed in a hurry before meeting Wynonna in the alley earlier that evening.

“It’s fine. My aunt-” Waverly stopped herself and sighed because she was sure she would have that slip of the tongue a lot. She reached for the handle of her suitcase and gave Nicole a crooked smile “- I have been saving my allowances for an emergency.”

Nicole pulled the handle of Waverly’s suitcase away from her and gave her a little smile before turning and heading toward the row of room doors that lined the parking lot. They were in a rundown motel just off the highway but it was one of the only places that had a room available last minute. “Well, Wynonna gave me one of Ward’s credit cards, too, so we could still totally split things.”

“It was my pleasure” Waverly nodded, fighting off a smile at the chivalrous gesture Nicole had made by carrying her suitcase for her. “Besides, paying in cash guarantees we won’t be tracked down.”

Nicole gave a nod of agreement as they made their way to the door with the number 5 on it. Once she arrived she stood there holding their bags as she waited for Waverly to use the keycard to open the room. She then gestured for the girl to go ahead of her before she finally followed her inside. She kicked the door closed and set the bags on the bed as she looked around. Her lip curled at the corner in disgust at what she saw. Outdated floral prints on the wall and bedspread made the dingy brown carpet and water stains on the ceiling look only slightly less gross. She let out a heavy sigh and shrugged before shifting her eyes back to Waverly “Well, it could be worse.”

“You get what you pay for, I guess” Waverly huffed then moved over to the bed. She started to unzip her suitcase but paused when something occurred to her. She bit her lip kind of shyly and glanced at Nicole timidly “So, apparently there is only one bed.”

“I-” Nicole looked around then back to Waverly and blushed “-oh.” She bit her lip and gave a nod as the redness spread over her cheeks to her ears. “Well, it could be worse.”

Waverly let out a soft giggle at the response and nodded in agreement. This would not be the first time the two of them had slept together in the same bed. This would, however, be the first time they were without supervision of any sort and although Waverly had no intentions outside of sleeping it did suddenly seem a little more awkward to know that they were completely alone now. She licked at her lips and slowly looked back to her bag in an attempt to distract herself enough to get the blush in her cheeks to fade “So, um” She cleared her throat as she pulled out some pajama bottoms “I just realized how delicate this situation could be.”

Nicole let out a heavy sigh as she tried to push down the heat that had risen in her body. She gave a nod and turned now to fiddle with the duffle bag Wynonna had given her. If Waverly was going to avoid eye contact then she could totally do the same. She had to, actually, or she felt she would just stand there awkwardly wanting to die. “Um, well, it doesn’t have to be. It’s just a bed and I know all I wanna do is sleep and maybe cuddle a little but, you know, not if you don’t want to or if that makes you uncomfortable or anything I just meant-”

“It’s okay” Waverly reached up and touched Nicole’s arm calmly, offering her a soft smile. Somehow, Nicole’s nervous rambling had immediately soothed her. She was relieved that there were no expectations between them. That took a lot of the awkwardness out of it. “So we sleep and we totally cuddle.” She nodded at her own words “A lot of cuddling.”

“Really?” Both eyebrows lifted on Nicole’s head in surprise at the words from her girlfriend.

“Totally” Waverly laughed the word out softly as she lifted onto her toes and placed a very gentle kiss on Nicole's lips. “I love cuddling.”

“Me too” Nicole let out a sigh of relief as her eyes dropped back down to the lock on the zipper of the duffle back she had been fidgeting with. She couldn’t help but smile now. Things with Waverly were so effortless that it was easy to forget that they were in the middle of a complete shit show.

“I’m going to go change and brush my teeth,” Waverly said softly, motioning to where the bathroom was across the small room they were sharing. “Don’t ditch me when my back is turned.”

“Why would I do that?” Nicole laughed at the thought as she looked up at her girlfriend.

“I have no idea,” Waverly admitted with a laugh of her own. “I think I’ve seen one too many movies” She motioned around where they stood and shrugged “Seedy motel room, mysterious duffle bag-” She gestured to the bag Nicole still hadn’t opened “-random roadtrip to get out of town. It’s all very suspicious, you know.”

“Shut up” Nicole laughed again. She could see that Waverly was being a smartass by the smirk on her face. She had to admit she absolutely adored how playful the girl was when it was just the two of them together. “Go get changed” She rolled her eyes as if she were annoyed then smirked when Waverly turned her back with a giggle and headed to the bathroom.

She let out a happy sigh as she focused back on the lock of the duffle bag. It was jammed, of course, because nothing could ever work the way it was supposed to. She grunted as she fussed with the lock for a few minutes. She was about to give up and just break it when it finally popped open. She cursed Wynonna under her breath as she worked to remove the lock and finally pull the zipper open.

Her eyes fluttered and she stared in disbelief for a few seconds as the contents of the duffle bag came into view. 

“What is it?” Waverly had just come from the bathroom after changing to see Nicole staring into the bag.

“Cash” Nicole stuck her hand into the bag and started to rifle around. “Like, a lot of cash.” She shook her head at that because she was having a hard time wrapping her mind around it. Then her hand stopped and she froze. Her eyes went wide and she pulled her hand away quickly “And a gun! Why would we need a gun?”

“A gun?” Waverly repeated with a curious inflection in her tone. She moved over to where Nicole stood and looked inside the bag. When she saw the firearm she gave a single nod “Yeah, okay, that is a gun.”

“She’s nuts” Nicole huffed and stepped back from the bag. “What does she think we are going to do with a gun?”

“She did say she’s had the bag packed for a while. Maybe she forgot it was in there?” Waverly shrugged at the suggestion as she started to move stuff around for herself. “Besides, she thought she would be the one going with you. Maybe she wanted a way to protect you just in case you two had to leave under, you know, bad circumstances.” She glanced at Nicole with a sad look in her eyes before shaking her head. She still didn’t really know what their home life was like but if Ward was as terrible as they made him out to be she wouldn’t be surprised if his anger escalated one day.

“Maybe” Nicole threw her hands up in defeat and stepped back toward the bag. “That doesn’t really explain where she got all the cash though. It looks like she robbed a bank.”

“There’s not that much,” Waverly said with a laugh as she pulled a few bundles out and looked them over. “A couple thousand. Depending on how long she’s been collecting it there’s a good chance this is her money.”

“What, like an allowance?” Nicole snorted out a laugh at the idea. “Not in the Earp household.”

“Okay, so it’s probably stolen” Waverly relented with a nod. “I had a feeling she had a stash of cash somewhere when she pulled out Ward’s card last night. I just wonder how it is that no one has reported the money missing.”

“Wynonna’s smart. She probably just swiped a few bills here and there from Ward and Michelle without them noticing” Nicole shrugged and finally reached back into the bag. She came across a folder and her eyebrow arched curiously as she pulled it out. She glanced at Waverly as if silently asking her what she thought it was. When the girl shrugged, Nicole flipped the folder open.

“Fake I.D.s and Passports!” Waverly sounded excited by the reveal of what the folder held.

Nicole let out a laugh and took hold of one of the I.D. cards. “Ophelia Dicks” She read the name with a roll of her eyes and a shake of her head. “Of course.”

Waverly giggled and reached for the card. She looked it over, giving an impressed nod, before handing it back “It looks real and at least she used a cute picture of you.”

“You think it’s cute?” Nicole smirked, her eyebrow twitching curiously on her forehead.

“I think everything about you is cute” Waverly said firmly with a single nod as her arms lifted and she slid her hands around the back of Nicole’s neck “But most especially your face.”

Nicole couldn’t help the blush that spread over her cheeks. She smiled slowly, unleashing her dimples, as her hands moved around Waverly’s waist “You’re just saying that to butter me up.”

“And what exactly would I gain by buttering you up?” Waverly fought off a giggle and tried to look as innocent as possible. 

Nicole let out a very happy sounding sigh and shook her head slightly. She leaned down into her girlfriend and just before letting her lips touch Waverly’s, she whispered “Anything you want.”

Waverly let out a low laugh as her lips took in the kiss from Nicole. She let herself melt against her girlfriend and the kiss for just a few moments. It was nice to be able to have moments like this with someone she cared deeply for. It gave her a sense of security in a time where nothing else seemed stable. Embraces like this were something she needed more than she could say.

As the kiss ended and she lowered herself from her toes, Waverly’s eyes fluttered open and a smile spread over her lips. “You know, you shouldn’t say things like that to me. I feel very powerful when you do.”

Nicole let out a breathy laugh as a hand lifted to push back some of her short red hair that had fallen forward during the kiss “I mean it. I’d do a lot of things for you.”

Waverly let out another happy sigh as her hands dropped away from the back of Nicole’s neck. They slid down her shoulders and over the front of her chest, stopping just before her breasts, where she gave a few pats then pulled them away completely “Better be careful or I’ll ask you to do something crazy.”

“Yeah?” Nicole blushed at the sensation of Waverly’s hands on her chest but tried to shake it off and focus on the conversation. “Like what?”

“I dunno” Waverly flitted a hand to the side in a shrugging gesture “Rob a bank?”

“Wynonna beat me to it” Nicole huffed out a laugh and motioned toward the duffel bag.

Waverly glanced at the bag with a smirk before shrugging it off and moving to her suitcase “I guess I am going to have to think of something, then.”

Nicole blushed and drew in a deep breath. It still blew her mind. She hoped she never got used to the overwhelming feeling that she was dreaming when it came to the fact that Waverly was actually her girlfriend. It was just too good to be true.

While Nicole stood there looking like a lovesick puppy, Waverly packed away her discarded clothing and toothbrush. She then moved her suitcase to the floor. She glanced over her shoulder to see Nicole staring at her with a goofy little sideways grin and she couldn’t help but smile. No one made her feel as special as Nicole did. She wasn’t sure she deserved the girl, to be honest, but she was glad to have her.

“Why don’t you go change” She finally broke the silence in the room and motioned to the suitcase of Nicole’s things that the girl had managed to pull together in her haste to pack before getting caught by Ward or Michelle. “Then you can come snuggle” She added as she pulled back the blanket on the bed and motioned to the spot.

“Totally” Nicole blinked and brought herself back to reality. She blushed at the fact that Waverly had just caught her staring at her making what Wynonna had described as googly eyes. She shook it off and moved to her suitcase. She pulled it open and rummaged through it only to very quickly realize the mistake she had made. She bit her lip and let out a deflating sigh “I suck at panic packing.”

“What’s wrong?” Waverly had been carefully examining the sheets and pillows for stains when she looked up at Nicole curiously. 

“I packed clothes but no pajamas” Nicole breathed the words out in despair and sat down on the bed heavily. “I guess I’m sleeping in jeans!”

“Lucky for you I have an extra pair of shorts” Waverly moved to her suitcase and crouched down next to it. She was quick to find what she was looking for and tossed the spare pair at her girlfriend with a smile. “Wear these and your tshirt tonight and we will go get you something comfy to sleep in tomorrow morning.”

Nicole lifted the shorts between her hands, pinching the fabric with her forefinger and thumb on each side, holding the garment at eye level as she examined them. After a moment she shook her head and dropped her hands to her lap heavily “These are shorts? These look like underwear!”

“Don’t be dramatic!” Waverly laughed and moved over to the bed. She took the shorts from her girlfriend and held the garment against her waist. “See?” She nodded as she sashayed her hips back and forth as if she were wearing the shorts herself “They are not underwear.”

“There is no fabric” Nicole sounded distraught as she pointed to the very small bit of length where the leg holes were. “I am going to be showing a lot of-” She gestured enthusiastically to her upper thighs and blushed.

“They’re legs” Waverly rolled her eyes and grabbed hold of Nicole’s arm, tugging in silent urging for her to get off the bed. “Just go change.”

Nicole groaned and like a child being told to do something they didn’t wanna do, she dragged her feet every step of the way until she was in the bathroom with the door closed.

“She’s a drama queen” Waverly mused through a soft laugh as she worked to remove Nicole’s suitcase and duffle bag from the bed. She gently set them aside with her own belongings before going in search of Nicole’s toothbrush. Once she found it, in the first zipper she tried, she moved to the bathroom and knocked gently “I have your toothbrush.”

The door cracked open and Nicole held her hand out but that was the only part of her that was visible.

Waverly laughed and handed over the toiletry before folding her arms across her chest and leaning against the wall right next to the door. She was quiet for a little bit, just listening to the sounds on the other side of the door. After a moment she pushed off the wall, a happy smile on her lips, before moving back toward the bed. She crawled onto the right side of the bed and situated the sheets and blankets across her legs, leaning back against the headboard as she waited for Nicole.

“Okay, just don’t look” Nicole called out as she cracked the door open again, sticking her face out now.

“Nicole, please” Waverly shook her head in amusement and beckoned for the girl to come out of the bathroom. “Legs are not going to scare me.”

“I’m not-” Nicole sighed in frustration and shook her head. She turned off the bathroom light but stayed behind the door. “Don’t laugh at me but I’m not comfortable showing a lot of skin.”

Waverly’s amusement melted into an empathetic frown. She bit her lip and nodded just slightly in understanding “Okay, I’ll cover my eyes.” She did just that, lifting both hands and laying them tightly over her face so she couldn’t see anything.

Nicole waited a few seconds after Waverly’s eyes were covered just to be sure the girl was not peeking through her fingers. When she felt confident that Waverly had honored her wish, she quickly slipped from the bathroom and practically sprinted to the bed. She crawled in as fast as possible and tugged the blanket over her legs. Once she was set, she let out a heavy sigh and nodded just once “Okay. You can look now.”

Waverly parted her fingers and carefully looked at Nicole through them. When she saw that her girlfriend was sitting beside her, covered, hanging her head, she frowned again and dropped her hands. She reached over and gently placed her hand against one of Nicole’s legs “You have absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about. A lot of girls don’t feel comfortable showing a lot of skin and you have, like, a lot of leg” She gestured to the fact that Nicole’s legs were obviously much longer than her own. “I totally get it.”

“I just-” Nicole huffed as her shoulders gave a pathetic shrug. Her eyes stayed on her covered legs and she felt like she might start the bed on fire with how hot her skin felt from the full body blush she had going on. 

“You don’t have to explain” Waverly whispered when it looked like Nicole was struggling to find words to justify her own embarrassment. 

“Ward was always yelling at Michelle about how she dressed when she did the rodeo” Nicole blurted out before she could stop herself. “I’m not going to tell you the names he called her because I am sure you can guess. But-” She sighed and glanced at Waverly with a defeated frown on her lips “-It makes it hard to feel anything but ashamed of my body when you hear the man that’s supposed to be your father telling your mother that showing that much skin is disgusting.”

Waverly immediately teared up. She couldn’t even imagine having to live in such a hostile home. She shook her head and shifted on the bed so she could wrap her arms tightly around Nicole in a hug. She let out a heavy sigh as she held her “He’s wrong, Nicole. You’re beautiful and women are beautiful, and the only disgusting thing about showing off skin is the judgement of others.”

Nicole just nodded as her arm wrapped around Waverly to return the embrace. She was aware that her childhood had been terrible and that she had been mistreated but she was only now starting to realize just how horrifying it all was. No one should ever have to grow up in a home like hers and yet there were children all across the globe who lived in situations similar to her own. Even worse, there were kids who had a much, much tougher life.

Waverly pulled back from the hug and lifted her hands to cup at Nicole’s face. She looked her straight in the eyes and gave a single nod “I don’t know what’s going to happen in the future but I do know I am going to do everything I can to make sure you learn just how amazing you are. Your heart, your sense of humor, and your body. They are all beautiful and I hope I can make you believe that.”

“Stop,” Nicole choked on the emotions that swelled in her throat from the words Waverly spoke. She lifted a hand and wiped at her girlfriend’s cheek to dry it as her own eyes brimmed with unshed tears. “Please don’t say things like that if you don’t mean them.”

“I promise” Waverly felt a new wave of tears flood her eyes. She didn’t blink, though. She never once pulled her eyes away from her girlfriend’s “You’re incredible, Nicole, and I can’t wait to watch you realize that.”

Nicole didn’t know what else to say so she just closed her eyes and let the tears building there finally fall. She swallowed the lump of emotion that was stinging her throat as her arms closed around Waverly. She pulled the girl into her tightly, holding her as if she were the only thing keeping her steady. She kind of was. Aside from Wynonna, Waverly was the only other thing in her life that offered any sort of stability or strength. She was certain she would never be able to get through this without Waverly by her side.

Waverly didn’t say anything more. She let Nicole hold her, lending the girl any and all the strength she needed in that moment. She simply rubbed Nicole’s back and stayed in her arms. Before getting to know Nicole there was no way she could have guessed just how deeply the girl was wounded. She wished the switch never would have happened because Nicole did not deserve to have gone through a childhood like that. She wished she could go back in time and change everything. But all they could do now was look forward and come Hell or high water Waverly was determined to keep her word. She knew she was already falling for Nicole and she wouldn’t rest until the girl loved herself just as much.

~.~.~.~.~.~.


	16. "Well, if it’s right you don’t think about the cliff, because you’re sure when you reach the edge, you’ll fly.”

Nicole’s fingers wrapped tightly around the buckle sitting at Waverly’s waist. She glanced up at the girl, twitching an eyebrow up curiously, before her gaze fell back to where her hand was working. She gave a little tug against the buckle, showing just how tightly it was fastened, before her head nodded confidently. When she lifted her eyes back to Waverly’s timid gaze, a soft smile spread across her lips before she spoke “This thing is not coming off without a lot of force, trust me.”

“Are you sure?” Waverly bit her lip nervously and looked down to her waist. Her own hand replaced Nicole’s around the buckle and she pulled firmly a few times to confirm that it was indeed tight.

“You’re totally safe. I promise” Nicole motioned to her own waist now and once she had her girlfriend’s eyes in that direction she worked quickly to demonstrate how the buckle locked in place. “See that? The mechanism physically can not come undone unless you have it placed against the magnet and the only magnets are on the ground.”

“Okay” Waverly let out a heavy sigh and turned her eyes upward now. They were standing at the base of a very tall rock climbing wall. She had been surprised, and thrilled, when Nicole finally revealed to her that morning what they would be doing but now that she was standing in the shadow of the wall she felt anxious. “I didn’t think I would be so nervous.”

“Are you afraid of heights?” Nicole asked gently as she moved to stand beside Waverly, turning her head upward to look at the wall as well.

“I don’t really know,” Waverly admitted with a shrug. “I’ve always considered myself adventurous but I’ve never actually been put in a situation like this.”

“Well, I’ve done this a few times so you can trust me when I tell you it’s totally safe” Nicole laid her hand against Waverly’s back and offered the girl a comforting smile. “Plus, you totally paid attention in the introduction course so I know you got this.”

Waverly glanced at her girlfriend and smirked just slightly. She had taken very thorough notes during the introduction to rock climbing and safety courses they had sat through that morning. She couldn’t help it. She was detail oriented and loved taking notes. It helped her retain everything.

“Do you want me to go first?” Nicole offered as she stepped away from Waverly and motioned to the wall. The rock climbing wall was lined with colorful pegs that were to be used for foot and hand holds as the climbers made their ascent. The fake rock spanned two entire interior walls within a warehouse that was once used to house aircraft. It was divided into different sections of difficulty, each section painted a specific color to identify how hard that portion of the wall was to climb. There were a couple dozen climbers spread about, trying their hands at the various paths to the top. Some of them were easy, with a lot of pegs to use, and some of them were more difficult with less pegs. There were instructors spread about as well to answer questions, do safety checks, and give climbing tips and encouragement. 

“No” Waverly rolled her eyes and pouted just slightly as she moved over to the wall. “You’ve done this before. I don’t need you to show off for me.”

Nicole let out a soft laugh and lifted her hands in a gesture of surrender as she moved away from the wall.

Waverly smiled crookedly as she glanced at Nicole. Honestly, she was terrified but she was also the type of person to do things that scared her because she believed that is how you truly experienced life. With that in mind, she drew in a deep breath to steel her nerves and approached the wall. 

“Take your time” Nicole spoke gently. She wanted to encourage and support her girlfriend without making her feel like she was being rushed or criticised. “Look at your path and try to decide which pegs you want to use. Planning ahead can help make the climb a little less nerve wracking.”

Waverly gave a nod to acknowledge what Nicole had said as her eyes lifted to look up the wall again. She was on one of the easier paths so it was pretty much a straight shot up. There was some texture to the fake rock, a few bumps or dips in the surface, but nothing too crazy. She couldn’t help but to feel small, though, standing next to the towering structure. Maybe she was afraid of heights after all because the thought of reaching the top was what was truly terrifying her at the moment.

“You got this” Nicole whispered against Waverly’s ear before placing a kiss on her cheek and snapping the safety wire into the buckle at her girlfriend’s waist.

Waverly blushed and turned to look at Nicole with gratitude on her face. She lifted a hand to push her helmet back so she could see her a little better. When their eyes met she suddenly felt confident. The way that her girlfriend’s gaze was full of belief in her helped her feel like she could accomplish anything. “You’re beautiful, do you know that?”

Nicole blushed and tried to shake off the compliment with a gesture to the wall “Stop stalling.”

“Whether I’m stalling or not doesn’t change the fact that you’re beautiful” Waverly giggled lightly then turned back to the wall. She looked up once more and let out a sharp exhale. She could do this. Before she could change her mind she reached up and grabbed onto her first hand hold, using it to pull her weight up as she lifted herself off the ground and onto the wall.

Nicole smiled widely as she watched Waverly face her fear and start up the wall. She stood at the base of the wall and cheered her on. With each new peg that Waverly reached and each foot she rose into the air, Nicole felt her heart flutter more and more. This girl was amazing and even though she was terrified she didn’t let that stop her from trying something new. Nicole was inspired by Waverly more each day and she knew without a doubt that she had already fallen head over heels for her.

It took about two minutes for Waverly to reach the top of the massive structure. Once she did, she was able to hit the buzzer that signalled she had reached the summit. She pounded the button for the buzzer triumphantly then turned around to look down to the ground. When she saw Nicole was cheering for her, she felt her heart flutter. Adrenaline was surging through her body. She understood why people did risky things like this now, the rush was incredible.

“You have to let go” Nicole called up to Waverly with a laugh. 

“What?” Waverly’s eyes went wide. She had been holding onto the top pegs with a white knuckle grip. She had assumed she had to climb back down now.

“Let go. The wire-” Nicole tugged at the wire that was attached at her own hip and nodded “-it’ll lower you slowly, remember?”

“Oh” Waverly nodded and looked at the wire hooked to her harness. In her euphoria she had forgotten about the safety wire. She licked her lips and positioned herself so she was facing the wall again. She took a few moments to brace herself for the decent then closed her eyes and pushed off the wall. She let out a little squeak as she fell just a few inches before the safety wire tightened and started to slowly lower her toward the ground.

“That was awesome!” Nicole rushed over to Waverly as soon as she was within arms reach. She grabbed her waist and pulled her firmly until the girl could put her feet on the ground. Once her girlfriend was safe, Nicole’s face lit up with happy anticipation “So? How was it?”

“Incredible” Waverly breathed out in awe as she looked back up the massive wall she had just successfully climbed. “It was scary at the top but not too bad. The rush, though…” She trailed off and shook her head as she looked back at Nicole. She had a happy, awestruck look in her eyes “...I can see why you like it so much.”

“I am so proud of you” Nicole lifted her hand up under Waverly’s chin and used it to tilt the girl’s face upward. She leaned down and touched a soft kiss to her girlfriend’s lips before letting out a happy sigh and dropping her hand away. “Just wait until you try the harder courses. You’ll really be buzzing with adrenaline when you reach the top of those ones.”

Waverly let out a happy breath of a laugh at Nicole’s excitement. She could see the girl was totally in her element. She was carefree and happy and didn’t have a single worry in the world. She wished there was a way that Nicole could be this happy all the time. She nodded at the thought then gave a motion to the wall with a flick of her hand “Well why don’t you show me how it’s done?”

“Oh I can’t do those ones yet” Nicole motioned to the red part of the wall that was for advanced climbers only. “But I can do the yellow” She gestured for Waverly to follow and the two of them unhooked their safety wires and moved along the wall to the section that was just a bit harder. Once they found a part of the wall that didn’t have any climbers, they both reattached the safety wires designated for that section then flagged down an instructor to come do a safety check.

“So I’m assuming the black is for, like, professionals?” Waverly flipped her arm in the direction of the black wall that was tucked at the far end of the warehouse.

“You need a special certification to climb the black wall” The instructor confirmed with a nod. Once he was done checking the safety wires and harnesses he gave the girls a smile. “You two have fun.”

“The black wall doesn’t have any safety wires” Nicole gestured in the direction of the wall as she approached the yellow portion she was standing in front of now. “I guess it’s used for the free climbers to come practice on before they go out to the mountains.”

“That’s insane” Waverly’s eyes had not left the single climber she could see trying to traverse the black wall in the distance.

“Totally” Nicole dipped her hand into one of the bowls that held chalk then clapped a few times to spread it out over her fingers and palms. She glanced back at Waverly and laughed at how intrigued the girl was by the free climber. “Maybe you should see how you like climbing a few mountains with all the safety gear first before you take on free climbing.”

“What?” Waverly snapped her head to look at Nicole, her eyes wide with panic. “I don’t want to climb a mountain! I was just watching.”

Nicole was a little surprised by the panic in Waverly’s eyes. She looked the girl over just once before a calm smile came to her lips “Don’t worry, we all tandem climb with an instructor placing the anchors and such.” She shrugged it off then turned back to the wall. She looked upward, plotting out the course she would take to the top.

“Wait, are you serious?” Waverly rushed over to Nicole and grabbed her arm to get her attention. “We’re going to be climbing real mountains?”

“Yeah” Nicole shrugged again as if that should have been obvious. “Why do you think this is a five day course?”

Waverly huffed, her mouth hanging agape because she had no defense. She just shrugged and shook her head at that “Well….I hadn’t really thought about it!”

Nicole laughed very softly. She wasn’t sure she had ever seen Waverly truly panic and she had to admit it was a nice change. “It’s gonna be fine” She spoke softly, laying a comforting hand on Waverly’s shoulder. “I would never put you in danger.”

Even though she was determined to keep panicking, Waverly’s worries eased a little due to the way Nicole was looking at her. She could see in her eyes that the girl was being genuine. She had no doubt that Nicole would risk her own life in order to save Waverly if it ever came to it. So, despite her desire to keep freaking out, Waverly let out a soft sigh and nodded “Promise?”

“With all my heart” Nicole whispered, putting a hand against her chest.

“Okay” Waverly’s lips twitched into a brief smile before she stepped away from her girlfriend. “As you were” She motioned to the wall that Nicole had been preparing to climb and nodded.

When Nicole dropped her hand from her heart there was a chalk handprint there but she hardly noticed. Instead she gave Waverly a wink then turned her focus back to the wall. Her eyes lifted once more and after a few moments of deliberation she reached above her head and started her ascent. 

Waverly felt her heart flutter, for some reason, at the way Nicole confidently started her climb. She kept her eyes turned upward until Nicole disappeared over a part of the fake rock that was jutting out. She stepped back to try and see the girl climb and when she found her again she was traversing a particularly tricky part of the course. She bit her lip nervously. She wasn’t sure she would ever have the fortitude to scale a real mountain and that made her admire Nicole even more than she already did.

Suddenly Nicole jumped in an attempt to grab onto a peg that was slightly out of reach. She barely managed to grab hold of the peg and was now holding her entire body weight up by just her fingertips.

Waverly gasped before covering her mouth and staring upward with horror on her face.

Nicole grunted and closed her fingers around the peg more tightly. Her forearm was burning but she tried to ignore the pain and focus on finding another peg to grab hold of nearby. She kicked her feet a few times, trying to gain some momentum so she could swing back toward the wall and hopefully catch her feet onto something that would offer a little relief.

Waverly’s heart was racing as she watched Nicole swing back and forth. In that moment she forgot the girl was tethered to a safety wire and she started to fear that she might actually fall.

After a few excruciatingly long seconds of swinging back and forth, Nicole’s left toes managed to land onto a hold. She dug her toes in as tightly as she could and it offered it just enough support for her to shift her body weight back up against the wall. She reached above her head with her left arm and found another hand hold. As soon as she knew she was safe she pulled her right hand off the hold she had been gripping for dear life and shook it out. She opened and closed her fist a few times to relieve the ache in her fingers before she looked down to the ground. When she saw Waverly standing there looking worried, she smiled widely and gave the girl a thumbs up.

Waverly visibly exhaled and dropped her hand from her mouth to her heart. She could feel it thundering in her chest. She was pretty sure she had never been that scared in her entire life. She would have to remind Nicole to be extra careful the next time she climbed the wall because she was certain she would not be able to take another scare like that. She was young, sure, but she had no doubt that having to watch Nicole dangling from a rock again would kill her.

Nicole managed to make it to the top without much more trouble. Once she rang the buzzer to signal that she had made it she let out a sigh of relief. She then pushed off the wall and started her slow, controlled descent. Halfway down the wall she grabbed onto the safety wire, pushed off the wall, and turned herself upside down. She smirked when she heard Waverly gasp out in surprise. As she drew closer to the ground she held the smirk and once she was within speaking distance she wiggled her eyebrows playfully “Look, I’m Spiderman.”

“Stop goofing off!” Waverly scolded her and moved over to where Nicole was still dangling upside down. She swatted lightly at her shoulder and frowned at her “You scared me half to death. I'm only sixteen, my heart shouldn’t be beating that fast.”

“You mean it doesn’t race when you see me?” Nicole stuck out her lips in an exaggerated pout.

Waverly rolled her eyes in an attempt to show she was annoyed. She couldn’t really sell it, though, because a small smile moved over her lips at the words. Okay, so Nicole was right her heart did race when she saw her but that wasn’t the point. “Will you hurry up and get down from there? I need lunch.”

“Yes, dear” Nicole rolled her eyes in amusement and pulled at the safety wire just enough to shift her weight so she could turn upright. Once her feet were on the floor she reached down and started to unhook the safety wire from her harness with the provided key that was attached at each station. Once she was finished she turned and beckoned for Waverly to come close enough to allow her to use the key on her harness as well.

Waverly stepped closer and watched Nicole’s skilled fingers work at the buckle attached to the harness at her waist. She drew in a deep breath as heat flooded her body. She was on a roller coaster of emotions and right now, after seeing the strength in Nicole’s hands, she was feeling a little flustered. She swallowed and tried to focus on something else “Is your hand alright?”

“I have very good finger strength” Nicole said casually, shrugging like it was no big deal as she fiddled with the buckle. She looked up and when she saw Waverly’s flushed cheeks her smile faded into a worried frown “Are you okay, Waves?”

“Huh?” Waverly’s eyes fluttered and she swallowed again. She looked down to see Nicole’s hand gripping tightly at the locking mechanism that she was working on undoing. She blinked and looked back up to find her girlfriend’s concerned gaze on her. She nodded and tried to laugh it away “Yeah, totally. I think I’m still…” She huffed and motioned toward her head in a vague gesture “...I was really worried is all.”

Nicole nodded slowly, letting her eyes linger on Waverly’s face for a few moments before she slowly looked back to what she was doing. She worked on the safety buckle for just a few more seconds before she had Waverly free of the wire. She looked up and gave the girl a smile before lifting her hands and wiggling her fingers as if to prove she was freed “Very dexterous.”

“Can you-” Waverly swatted at Nicole’s hands then turned and stormed away in a huff.

“Wait, Waves!” Nicole hurried after the girl but didn’t catch her until she was nearly at the exit. She let out a sad sigh as she caught Waverly’s arm and pulled her to a stop. “Hey, I’m sorry I was just messing around. I didn’t mean to scare you. I really thought I could get that hold without falling.”

“It’s not that” Waverly deflated as she turned to face her girlfriend. She folded her arms across her chest and rubbed kind of nervously at her biceps. She bit her lip and curled her brow as she tried to decide how to express what she was feeling. After a few moments she gave up and just shrugged in defeat “I don’t really know. Well, I think I know but-” She stopped and waved a hand across herself dismissively before her face softened slightly. “Can we talk about this in, like, private?” She glanced around and even though no one was paying them any attention she suddenly felt vulnerable.

Concern was painted all over Nicole’s face now. She had no idea what was going on. She really hoped they weren’t on the cusp of their first fight as a couple. She wasn’t sure she was ready for that. She shook that thought off quickly, though, and refocused on her girlfriend. “Sure. Let’s turn in our harnesses and go get some lunch.”

Waverly gave a single nod of acknowledgment then turned on her heels. She hurried over to the station where they had been given their harnesses and tugged at the loops and snaps in an attempt to free herself from the device. When she was unable to get herself undone she let out a frustrated huff and looked up at Nicole with an expectant look “How do you get out of this?”

“Calm down” Nicole whispered as she approached her girlfriend carefully. She could tell the girl was upset and she couldn’t help but to feel that it was her fault. She lifted her hands in a gesture to show that she was not trying to agitate her and instead was offering help. When Waverly did not resist, she gave a nod and reached down to work at the loops at her thighs. She pulled a few times and when the straps around Waverly’s legs loosened she stepped back and lifted her hands up to indicate the girl’s freedom once again. “Just undo the snap now” She nodded and reached toward her own waist, unsnapping her harness as an example.

Waverly huffed at herself and the fact that she had been too flustered to focus on loosening a few leg straps. She unsnapped her harness and pushed it to the floor, stepping out of it quickly before leaning over to sweep off the ground and into her hand. She then turned and offered the kid behind the equipment desk a bashful look as she handed it over “So many loops and straps and snaps I thought I was trapped forever.”

“Happens all the time” The kid lied as he took the harnesses back from both girls. He then offered them a cheerful smile of thanks before turning around to return the equipment to its proper place.

“Are you ready?” Nicole asked softly, still treading lightly so she didn’t say or do anything to further upset her girlfriend.

“Yeah” Waverly sighed at herself as she moved toward the storage cubbies where they all kept their belongings as they climbed. After fishing out her small purse and a few of Nicole’s belongings, she turned and looked at the girl. When she saw her downtrodden face looking like a puppy that had been kicked, Waverly immediately felt guilty. She reached out a hand toward her girlfriend and spoke gently “I’m not mad, okay? I promise.”

“You kinda seem mad” Nicole mumbled, not yet reaching out for the offered hand.

“I’m not” Waverly’s tone softened further. She hated seeing Nicole look so defeated. It was making her stomach churn. She never wanted to upset Nicole. In fact, she only wanted to make her happy. She frowned at that and waved her outstretched hand slightly to indicate she wanted the girl to take it “I’ll explain in the car, okay?”

Nicole chewed her bottom lip for a few seconds as if contemplating whether or not she believed Waverly. After thinking it over she relented with a sigh and reached for her hand. They stayed silent as they walked outside together, hand in hand, toward Waverly’s car. Neither one spoke as Waverly unlocked the doors. No one said a word while they climbed inside and buckled their seatbelts. It wasn’t until the car had been put into drive and Waverly was guiding it from the parking lot that Nicole dared speak. She drew in a deep breath and opened her mouth but was cut off when Waverly spoke first.

“You don’t have to apologize. I should be the one saying I’m sorry for how I acted” Waverly glanced over to her passenger with a frown on her lips. “Honestly, I don’t know what came over me. I felt like I was tossed in a blender of different emotions and I was having a hard time focusing on it all.” She drew in a deep breath and nodded just once at herself before looking over again and shrugging “I’m really sorry.”

Nicole nodded at the apology. Her brows creased in thought and when she spoke it was timidly “Did I upset you? Because, honestly, I was kind of showing off and I got a little sloppy.”

Waverly couldn’t fight the smile that moved over her lips at the admission. She thought it was adorable that Nicole had been showing off for her. She reached over now and laid her hand against her girlfriend’s thigh. “I was already impressed but I have to admit I like knowing you were showing off.”

Nicole lit up just slightly and arched an eyebrow at the words. She had not expected that. She laid her hand over Waverly’s and gave her fingers a squeeze “I can’t help it. I always want your eyes on me.”

“Trust me” Waverly laughed the words out and gave a few nods “My eyes were glued to all of you and every move you made.”

Nicole felt herself blush. The idea that Waverly’s eyes were glued to her every move knotted her stomach slightly. 

“That was, um, kind of the issue” Waverly admitted when Nicole didn’t immediately say something. She glanced over and when she saw her girlfriend looking confused, she just shook her head and let out a heavy breath “Not an issue, that’s not the right word. Issue indicates a problem and it wasn’t a problem. It was, well…” She trailed off with another shake of her head because she didn’t have a word for it.

“Whatever it is” Nicole could see Waverly was struggling to find the right words and she wanted to let her know that she was listening. Her hand wrapped a little more tightly around the one of Waverly’s that was resting on her thigh and she gave a nod “No judgement, okay?”

A wave of guilt washed over Waverly. Nicole was so sweet and understanding that she had not deserved to be lashed out against just because Waverly was having a hard time controlling her hormones. She rolled her eyes at herself and glanced over again with a frown on her lips “You promise not to like, I dunno, laugh at me?”

“Laugh?” Nicole hadn’t expected that to be Waverly’s concern and it showed by the surprised look on her face. “Why in the world would I laugh?”

“Because I was-” Waverly spat out quickly before stopping herself. Her face lit with a bright blush and her heart started to race as she realized what she was about to admit outloud. She chewed her bottom lip shyly for a few seconds before looking over to see Nicole waiting patiently, but curiously, for her to continue. As she pulled into the motel parking lot she let out a defeated sounding sigh and mumbled out the words “-I was turned on.”

“You were what?” Nicole leaned closer as Waverly pulled the car to a stop. She genuinely had not heard what her girlfriend had said.

“Turned on, okay?” Waverly huffed and threw her hands up in defeat. She kept her eyes straight forward, unable to look at whatever reaction Nicole might have.

“Oh” Nicole’s entire body warmed up. Her skin burned with a full body blush and her insides were overrun with the heat of desire. She stared at Waverly in total shock, looking like a deer in the headlights, unable to really say or do anything else because she was totally stunned. Waverly, the girl of her dreams, the girl she had admired and desired from afar just admitted that Nicole had turned her on. She was having a hard time wrapping her head around it.

When nothing more came from Nicole but silence, Waverly felt embarrassment shoot through every nerve in her body. This was a new sensation for her because, well, Waverly was a very sure person. She carried her head high and oozed with confidence even when faced with uncertainty. But now? Sitting silently in the car having confessed something so blatantly and not having gotten a response? She wanted to melt into the seat and die.

Nicole managed to notice that Waverly’s demeanor had changed. She realized that she hadn’t really said anything due to the fact that she had been completely surprised by the admission. She could only imagine how Waverly was feeling at the moment. She cleared her throat to speak but realized she didn’t know what to say. Her mind raced as she searched deep inside her vocabulary to find the words she would want to hear if the roles were reversed. She wanted to offer comfort and understanding and ease Waverly’s worries but instead when she spoke all she could manage was “Is that a bad thing?”

“Well, no” Waverly spat out as if she couldn’t believe Nicole had the gall to ask that. She turned her head just enough to be able to peek at her girlfriend and when she saw that the girl looked just as uncomfortable as she felt, that part of her that always knew what to do kicked in. She let out a sigh and turned to face Nicole completely now, her hands reaching up to take hold of her girlfriend’s face gently. She offered her the most comforting smile she could and spoke as soothingly as possible “It is an amazing thing, okay? Absolutely amazing.”

Nicole nodded in Waverly’s hands but still looked a little confused. She blinked just once and managed to speak a little more easily than the first time “Then why the freak out?”

“Oh. Well...” Waverly laughed awkwardly as her hands dropped from Nicole’s face. She reached down and took hold of both of her girlfriend’s hands and gave a tight squeeze. She drew in a deep breath and thought briefly about how she wanted to explain her reaction. After a moment she shrugged and set her eyes tenderly on Nicole’s awaiting gaze “I like you, a lot, and although I have gotten over my initial confusion about why you were making me feel certain things when we first started hanging out I guess I kind of forgot about…” She swallowed because she suddenly felt shy. She took a breath and tried to push through “...This was the first time I had experienced that sort of desire for you and I think, I dunno, it took me by surprise.”

Nicole had stopped blushing, briefly, as she focused on Waverly’s explanation but the last of the words brought blood rushing back to her cheeks, amongst other places in her body. She drew in a shaky breath and nodded just once to show Waverly she heard and understood what she had just said but she couldn’t really speak. She had no idea what to say. She wanted to die to escape this conversation because it was too much. The girl of her dreams thought about having sex with her. How was she supposed to react to that?

When Nicole didn’t respond and instead sat there with wide eyed panic on her face, Waverly felt her heart drop. She had expected her girlfriend to say something or make a joke and yet all she was getting was silence and an unblinking stare. She frowned, tilting her head to the side, before giving her hands a little shake in an attempt to jolt Nicole out of her stupor “Nicole, are you okay?”

Realizing she had not responded, Nicole blinked. When her eyes refocused she saw a worried Waverly looking back at her. This jolted her out of her frozen state and she quickly shook her head to bring herself back to earth. “I’m sorry. I am just, you know, surprised. I don’t know” She deflated a bit, looking a little sad now “I am, like, the worst when it comes to this stuff because I was never really taught how to deal with this. I learned about sex from Wynonna and even then it was just-” She pulled her hands out of Waverly’s and lifted them. She put the forefinger on her right hand into the slightly closed fist of her left hand, mimicking the universal hand gesture for sex, before dropping her hands into her lap with a shrug “I guess I never really stopped to think about what would happen if I actually started dating someone!”

“Woah, hey, it’s okay” Waverly spoke calmly, lifting her hands to once more cup at Nicole’s face. She held her there so she couldn’t look away and offered a slight nod “Look at me. I wasn’t trying to suggest anything, alright? But you were worried you’d upset me so I wanted to let you know that was so far from the truth. You did the complete opposite of upset me, okay?” She smiled gently, letting her hands slowly slide from Nicole’s cheeks to her shoulders. “I wanted to be honest. I think now more than ever, considering our entire lives have been a lie, it’s important that we’re honest with each other.”

Nicole drew in a deep breath and smiled very slightly. “I like that idea. No matter what else comes our way we need to always be honest with one another.”

“Totally” Waverly was relieved that Nicole had seemed to relax just a bit. “I promise never to lie to you.”

“And I’m a terrible liar anyway so” Nicole laughed, shrugging her shoulders casually. “You’d be able to tell right away that I was lying.”

“Say you promise” Waverly laughed the words very softly. 

“I promise” Nicole didn’t even skip a beat. “I will never lie to you, Waverly.”

“I will never lie to you, Nicole” Waverly whispered as she leaned across the car, lifting her hand to the back of Nicole’s neck, bringing her lips to press tightly against her girlfriends in a way of sealing the deal they had just made.

Nicole melted into the kiss. She reached out and slid her arm around Waverly’s back the best she could in the car. The kiss lingered for a few seconds and when it was broken, Nicole had a dreamy smile on her lips. She swept her tongue quickly over her lips as she pulled back and let out a happy sigh “I wish everything was as easy as being with you is.”

Waverly giggled very softly, moving her hand from the back of Nicole’s neck to her cheek. She let her thumb pass over one of Nicole’s dimples “You think being with me is easy?”

“Comparatively?” Nicole gestured to nowhere in particular to indicate the life they had left behind for a week. She gave a nod and laughed as if that should have been obviously. “Honestly, even if life wasn’t a trashcan fire being around you is still pretty effortless.”

“I know what you mean. It’s like we just-” Waverly pulled back from Nicole now completely and snapped her fingers “-clicked into place. I’ve never experienced anything like that before.”

“Really?” Nicole again looked surprised by Waverly. She had no idea if the girl would ever cease to have that effect on her. She really hoped not.

“Of course” Waverly laughed as she finally turned off her car and opened her door. She waited until Nicole followed suit before moving toward their motel room. “Honestly? I know I was popular or whatever but I don’t really have any true friends.”

“What about the principal’s daughter?” Nicole reached into her pocket and fished out the keycard for the door. She slid it into place then pushed the door open and motioned for Waverly to follow.

“We cheer together so we get along but we really haven’t formed any real bond outside of that” Waverly tossed her keys and small purse onto the small table inside the room then turned and sat on the bed.

Nicole nodded in understanding as she closed the door behind herself. She had Jeremy, thankfully, but other than that she didn’t really like a lot of the kids at school. Most teenagers were obnoxious to be around and she had her fill of obnoxiousness with Wynonna at home. “Kind of makes you think we were like, I dunno, meant to be friends at least, right?”

“At the very least” Waverly agreed with a soft laugh. She kicked off her shoes then flopped back onto the bed with a heavy sigh. She smiled at Nicole who was still standing up and she gave a quick flick of her hand to beckon the girl over. “Come help me decide what we should order for lunch.”

A smile broke out over Nicole’s face as she quickly removed her shoes then climbed up the bed to join her girlfriend. She laid on her left side, propping her head up on her hand, as her right hand came to rest against Waverly’s stomach “What are you in the mood for?”

Maybe it was the fact that she was an Earp and it was embedded in her genetic DNA to be a smartass when faced with the opportunity, but she could not pass up the chance to make a joke and before she could stop herself it was tumbling from her smirking lips “I thought I made that clear in the car.”

Like a knee jerk reaction, Nicole’s entire body lit with a blush. Her eyes went wide and she stiffened. 

Waverly immediately lost herself in a fit of raucous laughter. Her eyes closed and her head rolled back against the pillow she was lying against. She was laughing so hard the bed was jerking under her. The entire motel room was filled with the sound of her amusement at her own joke.

Nicole’s panic faded into a scowl and she used a finger to firmly jab Waverly in the ribs “That is not funny!”

“Come on, it’s a little funny,” Waverly said through her chuckles. She let herself enjoy her amusement for a few more seconds before she drew in a deep breath to calm herself. She wiped a tear from her eye before opening them and looking at the wounded expression on Nicole’s face. “Aww, poor baby. I’m sorry, I just couldn’t resist.” She rolled to her side to face Nicole and propped herself up on her elbow as her other hand lifted to lightly stroke her girlfriend’s cheek “I’m sorry.”

Nicole rolled her eyes but relented her annoyance with a sigh. Her lips twitched at the corners as she admitted “It was kind of funny.”

“See?” Waverly leaned in and touched a very light kiss to the tip of Nicole’s nose. “I’m still sorry.”

“It’s fine. Just…” Nicole drew in a deep breath then let it out sharply “...I’ll probably always react like that until I’m ready to, you know, um…” She shrugged as another blush crept in.

“You’re not ready to have sex and that’s fine” Waverly’s tone was soft but completely serious. “Neither am I” She put a hand to her heart and shook her head. “There is so much stuff going on, so many things I’ve yet to process, that sex is the last thing on my mind. I think that’s why I was so surprised by my reaction today, you know?” She dropped her hand to lay on the mattress between them “I am still adjusting to the fact that even with everything else happening, I am still a teenager. It almost feels wrong to think about things like the prom or movies or sex.”

“I totally get that,” Nicole said with a single nod. “We kind of got ripped off, you know? I’m not supposed to be dealing with a life-changing family scandal. I'm supposed to be sitting behind you in Biology daydreaming about saying hi.”

“You did that?” Waverly chewed her lower lip bashfully.

“Every day” Nicole admitted in a whisper. 

“Why?” Waverly shook her head because the idea just seemed silly to her. She wasn’t anything special.

“Why?” Nicole repeated the question with a laugh as if it should have been obvious. “You’re everything I’ve ever wanted. You’re smart and funny and kind. You’re beautiful-” She bit her lip as her eyes looked the girl over from head to toe before returning her gaze to Waverly’s face “-I’ve had a crush on you since that day in the grocery store with the pop-tarts.”

“Really?” Waverly was so surprised by the confession she could barely get the word out. She had been rendered speechless.

Nicole nodded just once. She suddenly realized what she had just admitted to and wondered if it was too much. She had to sound crazy, right? No one wanted to hear that they had been watched for years by someone they didn’t know.

Waverly closed the gap between them and pressed a feverish kiss against Nicole’s lips. Her hand once more reached to the back of the girl’s neck and she curled her fingers into the short strands of hair she found there. Her heart was racing. No one had ever made her feel as special as Nicole managed to. It was overwhelming to know that someone she cared for so deeply, someone she found intoxicating and incredible, felt the same way about her. She just couldn’t believe it.

Nicole was just a little surprised by the kiss but that faded quickly. She easily rolled herself forward, enough to let her weight lean into Waverly’s, as her hand moved from the bed to her girlfriend’s waist. She let herself be completely consumed by both the kiss and the feel of her body pressed tightly against Waverly’s. She allowed herself to indulge in the embrace, the kiss, the simplicity of sharing a moment like this with the most amazing person she had ever met.

They lost themselves in the kiss for a few minutes. It grew slightly heated but never pushed past hands roaming over chaste areas still covered by clothing. Neither of them seemed to really want the kiss to end but when Waverly’s stomach let out a growl that filled the room, the kiss was broken by their laughter. 

“I kind of forgot about lunch,” Waverly admitted as she reached down to touch her stomach. 

“Me too” Nicole licked her lips, sounding just a little breathless from the kiss.

“Well-” Waverly kissed Nicole once more, briefly, before pulling back and sitting up. She reached for her phone and as she pulled her legs up the bed, crossing them in front of her, she started to type something out on her screen. “So, what’ll be?”

“Pasta?” Nicole rolled onto her back and tucked both hands under her head. “I could go for some breadsticks.”

“Italian it is” Waverly agreed with a smile as her fingers flew over the screen.

Nicole let out a happy sigh as she watched her girlfriend try and find a restaurant nearby. She wasn’t really sure about a lot of things in her life but she knew for certain that she must have done something right to earn the privilege to be lying next to the most incredible girl on earth, watching her read online reviews before deciding where to eat. In a messed up world it was the simple things like this that made her think that it might turn out alright in the end.

~.~.~.~.~.


	17. “Love is not just the words you say to them at that moment but it’s also the things you do for them for the rest of your life.”

The next three days were surprisingly effortless. Nicole and Waverly easily found a new sort of rhythm with one another and that helped them fall into a routine. They spent the mornings practicing their rock climbing, with Waverly having shaken her first day jitters and now easily excelling, and their afternoons together doing regular teenager things. They explored the small town they were staying in but it had less to offer than Purgatory so they stayed at the motel a lot. It wasn’t too bad. The pool was nice and clean which was probably the biggest surprise out of everything.

Nicole made sure to check in daily with Wynonna. She knew her sister wasn’t worried as much as impatient. She wanted to know when they were coming home. Nicole felt a little guilty having left so abruptly but she knew it was exactly what she needed. She felt like the weight of her real life had melted away and, if she was being honest, she did not want to go back to Purgatory. Unfortunately, even if you ran from life it would always be there waiting for you to return.

The fifth day of the rock climbing course they had signed up for included a hike into their nearby mountains so they could put everything they learned to good use and climb an actual rock. The class they had been sharing the week with all packed up some gear, loaded onto a bus, and headed to the wilderness. They would spend the day hiking and climbing with the instructors, and head back into town that evening. 

Nicole and Waverly, however, would not be returning. They had checked out of their motel, packed up Waverly’s car, and followed the bus into the mountains. When they were done climbing they would stay behind to camp out for the night before making the trip back to Purgatory the next day. One last little moment of peace and serenity before driving back into the eye of the storm.

“Did you find a signal?” Waverly looked up as Nicole approached the fire she was currently feeding with more wood.

“For a second” Nicole squinted at her phone as she walked. “I sent a few texts and tried to call so hopefully at least one of the messages went through.”

“The good news is we’re not too far from civilization so if we need to get out of here in a hurry we can” Waverly glanced back at her car nearby and smiled. She liked adventure, sure, but she was just a little wary about camping in an unknown location without anyone knowing where they were.

“It’s gonna be fine” Nicole waved it off with a shrug before moving over to where Waverly was perched on a log. She sat down beside her and slid her arm around her waist “We have all the essentials we need thanks to the money Wynonna gave us. I’m sure she will be annoyed that we spent it on camping gear and not something more scandalous but she will just have to deal with it.”

Waverly let out a soft laugh and nodded in agreement as she poked the fire, stirring around the coals. “Did she ever tell you where she got the money?”

“When I asked all she said was Robin Hood, so…” Nicole shrugged and rolled her eyes at her sister’s inability to ever give her a straight answer. “I’m guessing she stole it a little at a time from Ward and Michelle.”

Waverly nodded in acknowledgement but didn’t say anything. She had been quiet for a lot of the day. She couldn’t turn her mind off. As amazing as their getaway had been she was also very aware of the fact that it was ending and they would be returning to the shitshow they had left behind. All her questions and worries that she had managed to bury over the past few days had consumed her thoughts again and she couldn’t shake them.

When no response came from Waverly, Nicole glanced over at her curiously. She could immediately tell something was bothering her. A frown moved over her features as her arm around Waverly’s waist moved so she could now rub at her back “What’s wrong?”

“We’ve had such an amazing time here, Nicole.” Waverly glanced up with a sad look in her eyes. “It’s been a blast. You and I, hanging out, being goofy and going on adventures together. It’s like, for the first time in my life, I’ve been able to be totally carefree and that’s because of you” She smiled softly as she lifted her hand and pressed it lightly against Nicole’s heart “I just don’t want it to end.”

“It doesn’t have to end” Nicole whispered quickly, shifting on the log so she was facing Waverly squarely. She used both hands to cup gently at her girlfriend’s cheeks, holding her eyes up so she could look straight into them “We could be like this always, you know? Just you and me, together, going from one adventure to another.”

“Not like this” Waverly motioned vaguely to their current location with a heavy sigh. “Not this peacefully without lying parents and untrustworthy adults who are supposed to have your best interest in mind but are actually selfish pricks.”

“Tacos are tasty” Nicole shook her head quickly, her hands giving Waverly’s face an urgent jerk “Tacos are tasty, please” She pleaded with both her eyes and her tone as she stared at her girlfriend desperately.

“Nicole, I know” Waverly’s tone was calming as she lifted her hands to Nicole’s face. She pulled her in close, touching a quick kiss to her lips, before closing her eyes and tilting their foreheads together. She let out a sad sigh and let her hands drop away from her girlfriend’s face in favor of sliding around her waist. She held her there gently, silently, letting them share one more moment together before allowing reality to set back in.

It was a few moments of just the sounds of nature around them before Nicole breathed out heavily and pulled away. Her hands lingered on Waverly’s cheek a moment before falling away completely. When her eyes fluttered open she found a soft, beautiful, calming pair of eyes gazing back at her and she knew that they could do this. As long as they had each other they could get through this. “Okay” Nicole cleared her throat and gave a nod “I rescind the safeword. We can talk about it.”

Waverly’s lips twisted into a pathetic, sideways attempt at a smile before standing from the log “I am actually really proud of us. We successfully avoided this topic all weekend.”

“That’s because this topic blows and I’d much rather focus on licorice sword fights with my girlfriend” Nicole grumbled, folding her arms in a pout as she watched Waverly move about the camp.

“A sword fight which I won” Waverly pointed firmly at Nicole to make her point before she dug into the small cooler of food they had put together in search of something to make for dinner.

“You did not win” Nicole rolled her eyes as she laughed. “You ate my sword. That’s called cheating.”

“There were no rules about sword eating!” Waverly turned and pointed again over her shoulder, this time with a mustard bottle.

“It’s implied!” Nicole chuckled as she stood and moved to the pile of wood to grab another piece for the fire. “You don’t see people eating guns during a gunfight, do you?”

“Well if they did wouldn’t you be intimidated and immediately flee?” Waverly stood from the cooler and shrugged matter-of-factly at the point she had just made. “Ergo, not cheating. It’s just a rarely deployed victory tactic that I was just brave enough to try.”

“You’re an idiot” Nicole laughed and threw a tiny stick at the girl.

“An idiot who beat you fair and square” Waverly chirped as she sat back on the log now that she had everything she needed to start dinner.

Nicole just rolled her eyes in amusement and watched Waverly for a few seconds. Her heart fluttered in her chest at the fact that this amazing girl willingly spent time with her. Not only that but they had deep conversations about their hopes and dreams. They made plans to do stuff together in the future, like the far off future, and talked about leaving Purgatory together as soon as they could. They laughed together and cuddled all the time and lived as if nothing bad existed when they were together. This weekend had been more than Nicole could have ever dreamed and it blew her mind that it was real.

Waverly looked up after a few seconds of no response from Nicole. That’s when she saw the girl standing across the fire with her dopey, happy grin on her lips. This immediately brought a small smile to her face. She had grown very fond of that look. That look meant Nicole was thinking about how happy she was. That was a very good look. It didn’t help that her dimples seemed particularly prominent when she had that grin on her lips and Waverly was weak to those dimples.

“What are you thinking about?” She finally broke the silence even though she could probably guess what Nicole had going on behind that goofy grin.

“I love you” Nicole sighed out happily. She immediately realized what had just tumbled from her lips and her heart sank as her eyes widened in panic. She could not believe she had just done that. She felt numb. Was she dying? She hoped so because she was horrified at her stupid loose lips. Damn it, why did Waverly have this effect on her?

Waverly’s eyes fluttered in surprise. Her heart took flight in her chest, beating so loudly it echoed in her ears. She stared in shock for a few seconds before she pushed off the log until she was standing. She stared wide eyed across the fire at Nicole, whose expression was a mirror image of her own, and tried to calm her racing heart. It felt like a lifetime that they both stood there, unblinking and frozen, before Waverly finally let out a breath of a laugh. Her expression softened and her eyebrows raised on her head as she spoke over the flames “You do?”

Nicole blinked when Waverly spoke. She felt the numbness leaving her extremities. She drew in a sharp breath and managed to escape the tunnel vision that had consumed her and focus on the girl standing across the fire. When she saw the dreamy smile on Waverly’s lips, she felt her heart do a flip in her chest. Maybe she hadn’t totally just shot herself in the foot. She nodded quickly as she moved around the fire and as soon as she was within arms reach she slid her hands around Waverly’s waist “Uh, yeah, for like a while now.”

Waverly’s smile grew as her hand lifted to Nicole’s face. Her fingers traced very delicately over the girl’s soft features that were dancing with the light of the flames swaying beside them. She took a few seconds to simply soak in every little detail about this moment, about the face of the girl who had stolen her heart, before she brought her eyes up to meet that girl’s awaiting gaze. “Good because I would hate to be alone in that feeling.”

“Really?” Nicole, like she had done countless times before, looked totally surprised by the idea that Waverly could feel the same way about her.

“Totally” Waverly whispered as she lifted onto her toes and pressed her lips firmly into a kiss as if proving just how deeply she meant the words.

Nicole’s entire body flushed with a warmth she had never felt before as her lips pressed to Waverly’s. The warmth flooded all of her senses, rushed through every vein, and consumed every last nerve ending in her body. The warmth wasn’t of lust or desire, no, it was something new and all consuming. It was a sensation that encapsulated everything she felt for Waverly. Every positive emotion, hormonal desire, and ounce of admiration she held for the girl all melted and swirled together in this warmth. Even more so, though, was within that mixture of her own feelings she could feel all of what Waverly felt, too. A perfect blend of their all consuming affection for one another coming together in that moment. As the kiss lingered and the warmth settled in, Nicole realized what this feeling was. For the first time in her life, outside of Wynonna of course, she felt genuinely loved by another human being.

The kiss was passionate and deep and spoke just how intensely both of the girls felt about one another. It lingered on for a minute or so before Waverly finally pulled back and lowered herself from her toes. She pulled her lower lip between her teeth briefly before her mouth broke out into a smile. Her fingers moved to push some of Nicole’s loose strands of hair back under the end of the beanie the girl wore before she finally brought her eyes back to find the girl watching her. This made her blush just slightly. She wasn’t sure she would ever get used to the special way Nicole looked at her. If eyes were the windows to the soul, Waverly had an unimpeded view right into the depth of Nicole’s being.

“Are you hungry?” She finally spoke, using her hands to pat at Nicole’s chest gently as she stepped away from the girl and turned her focus back to what she had been doing before the blurted confession of love.

“Very” Nicole breathed the word out in a laugh as she stepped back as well. She watched Waverly settle back onto the log before she tucked her hands into the pockets of her coat. It was starting to get really cold now that the sun was almost completely gone. “Do you need any help?”

“Sure” Waverly grinned up at the girl then motioned toward their camping supplies near where they had pitched their tent “Will you get those little, um, sticks? The roasting ones.”

Nicole laughed at the description and nodded while making her way over to the supplies. She dug through for a bit before finding what she needed. It took her a couple minutes but when she finally returned to the fire she had the sticks that had been requested along with paper plates and some plastic utensils. “I thought I’d set the table while you cook” She said cheerfully as she waved the plates in her hands.

“Smart” Waverly laughed in agreement as she took the sticks and carefully started to load them with the food she had been preparing. She had cut up a few vegetables and was now skewering them along with small pieces of vegan hot dogs. “You know, I’m really surprised the store here had meatless hotdogs.”

“I’m not” Nicole shrugged as she worked to unwrap the plates and napkins. “The rock climbing facility is one of their biggest tourist draws and a lot of the people that enjoy that sort of stuff are, you know, nature enthusiasts. That demographic has a high percentage of vegetarians and vegans so it’s smart to stock a selection of meatless options if you want to make any money.”

Waverly snorted as she extended one of the sticks full of food bits over the flames “Okay, know-it-all.”

Nicole let out a soft laugh as she moved over to help with the food now “I took marketing as an elective last year. I was actually pretty good at it.”

Waverly gave a little nudge of her shoulder against Nicole’s arm before looking back over the  
flames where they were were now both holding their sticks of food. “I’m just teasing. It’s impressive, though.” 

Nicole just shrugged it off as she turned her stick “I needed a class and it was either that or theater.”

“What’s wrong with theater?” Waverly huffed as if she had just been insulted. “I was in theater when I was in eighth grade.”

“There’s nothing wrong with theater” Nicole laughed and rotated her food again. “I just know that it’s not my thing, like at all.”

Waverly smirked slightly at the idea of Nicole standing on stage. It was definitely not something she could see the girl enjoying.

“You were in theater?” Nicole inquired in an attempt to shift the focus from herself.

Waverly nodded just once and kept her eyes on the food she was slowly turning over the fire. “I can sing, I can dance, I can cheer, I like Science and History, and I speak four languages” She finally looked over at Nicole and shrugged as casually as she could “A Jack Of All Trades, I guess.”

“That’s not such a bad thing” Nicole said with a nod. “I mean look how quickly you picked up on rock climbing.”

Waverly just shrugged. Her eyes focused on her food without speaking. She liked to be successful at things and luckily she had never really had to try too hard to be. But there was a reason she was always trying new things. She never felt like she had found any meaning in any of it. 

“What’s wrong?” Nicole whispered cautiously when she looked over and saw Waverly staring at the fire with a sad look on her face.

Waverly just shook her head. She thought it over for a moment before she exhaled heavily and finally looked up “I think I just realized why I am always trying new things. I’m searching for my place, you know? Like, my meaning in life, trying to find where I belong. I think…” She paused because she knew they had avoided the subject all weekend but it was growing increasingly obvious that they would have to face it sooner than later. She finally shook off her hesitation and looked back to her food “I think I’ve always known, deep down, that I didn’t belong with my aunt. I always thought it was because I’d lost my parents but…” She trailed off again and gestured vaguely toward nothing in particular and shook her head.

“I get it” Nicole didn’t need Waverly to continue. Feeling like you didn’t belong in your own home, with the people you called family, was something she understood without needing it explained to her. That was the experience of her entire childhood. She’d always thought it was a crazy notion but now she knew she had been right the entire time.

“What are we going to do when we get back to Purgatory?” Waverly mumbled, almost painfully, as she finally relented to the elephant in the room.

“I haven’t even thought about it,” Nicole admitted as she pulled her food off the fire. She held her stick upright and checked each piece for doneness. “I don’t think there’s a right or wrong answer. We just need to figure out what’s going to work for us.”

“Well I don’t want to swap back, that’s for sure” Waverly huffed at the idea as she spoke it.

“Neither do I,” Nicole agreed as she moved to get their plates. She brought them back and once she handed one to Waverly, she settled back on the log and started to unload her stick. “I also do not want to keep living with the Earps. Why would I subject myself to that treatment now that I know I don’t have to?”

“You absolutely shouldn’t” Waverly agreed as she pulled vegetables off her own stick and dropped them on the plate that was sitting in her lap. “And I do not want to move in there and play nice and pretend that I’m happy to finally know who my family is because, well…” She let out a soft sigh and glanced up at Nicole “...I don’t want anything to do with Ward.”

“I don’t blame you” Nicole shook her head then offered Waverly a fork. “But Michelle isn’t too bad. She’s a good cook and at least she was always nice to me, you know?” She shrugged then looked at her plate of food with a frown. Michelle wasn’t the most present mother but she was the only mother Nicole had ever known and she was feeling a tiny bit of sadness about not being related to her.

“She makes good carrot cake” Waverly agreed with a soft laugh. She could see Nicole seemed upset and this immediately worried her. She reached over and laid her hand against her girlfriend’s leg gently “I’m sure she really did care for you.”

“Maybe” Nicole shrugged. She didn’t want to believe anyone that actually cared about her would lie to her or let her be treated the way she had been. 

“At least you know Wynonna does” Waverly offered in hopes of cheering the girl up slightly.

“Thankfully” Nicole looked up now with a tiny, crooked smile on her lips. “You’re really going to like being her sister, Waves. I mean, it might take her a while to give into it, but she will eventually love you so much it’ll be hard to believe you two didn’t grow up together.”

Waverly felt her heart flutter because she liked the sound of that idea more than she would ever admit. She had always wanted a sister and the fact that she now had one was still a little hard to believe. “Do you really think so?”

“Oh I know so” Nicole stated without hesitation as she lifted a bite to her mouth. She paused, though, and gave a certain nod of her head “It’s in the very core of her being.”

“I have to admit that gaining Wynonna as a sister is the only bright spot in all of this” Waverly’s smile grew a bit as she spoke. “She’s been terrible to me but that’s not really her fault. I think once she gets to know me she will like me.”

“You’re just going to have to be patient with her” Nicole nodded then wiped her mouth with her napkin. “She doesn’t do feelings very well and she hates change so…” She shrugged and motioned to all of Waverly’s being “...you are pretty much the embodiment of her worst nightmare.”

“Wow. Thanks” Waverly grumbled weakly.

“I just mean you’re going to push her out of her comfort zone so, you know, be patient” Nicole reached out and set her hand against Waverly’s shoulder, giving it a very soft squeeze “It’ll be worth it.”

Waverly’s lips twisted into a crooked smile and she gave a single shoulder shrug “I guess she doesn’t really have a choice, does she? Like it or not she’s stuck with me now.”

“She has a choice” Nicole corrected with a little shake of her head. When Waverly seemed surprised by her answer, she jerked her shoulders into a shrug “We all have a choice now, Waverly. I mean…” She pointed at herself, then to Waverly, and back again “...we both have to decide who we want as family. Wynonna has to decide if she still wants anything to do with any of us. Michelle, Ward, Aunt Sheila…” She huffed the names with displeasure “...they all have to decide to accept the consequences of their actions.”

“You’re totally right” Waverly exhaled as if she had just realized that everyone involved were, well, still very much involved. She had been so focused on herself, and Nicole, that she hadn’t really thought about how this would affect everyone else. That was fair, though. They hadn’t stopped to consider how this would affect them before they made the decisions they had made. She rolled her eyes at that but quickly shook it off as she focused back on her girlfriend “Well, we definitely need to make it clear that what we say goes. We are in charge of our own lives now and if they don’t like it then we don’t need them.”

“I agree” Nicole nodded before looking back at her food. She picked at a few pieces as she tried to imagine how their lives would be different now. She most definitely had not missed all of the unanswered questions during this weekend getaway. After thinking about it for a few moments she looked back up to Waverly and spoke gently “So, what _do_ you want?”

Waverly shook her head because she didn’t have any specific answers. She slowly exhaled in thought and once her lungs were deflated she had a sheepish smile on her lips “Maybe we should break that question down into more specific decisions.”

“Like what?” Nicole couldn’t help to smile slightly at the way Waverly seemed to be trying to stay positive as they pushed through this conversation.

“Okay, well, like” Waverly gestured enthusiastically to nowhere in particular “Do you still want to call Michelle mom?”

“Oh” Nicole looked a little surprised at the bluntness of the question. But she knew they had to be direct if they were going to make any sort of progress. She blinked a few times, her brows curling together in thought, before she just shrugged her shoulders “I don’t want to call her mom but I definitely still want her in my life.”

“Okay, good” Waverly tossed her paper plate into the fire now that she was done eating. She then wiped her hands together, brushing off any remnants of food, before she slid a little closer to Nicole. She was smiling, looking hopeful, as she continued “Okay, so I think I want to get to know Michelle. I’m not sure I will ever call her mom or if she will ever feel like a mother but I’d definitely like her to be in my life.”

“Yeah?” Nicole tossed her plate in the fire, too. She hadn’t finished but she wasn’t hungry anymore. Her stomach had been twisting up on itself since they had started this conversation and she was sure it wouldn’t stop until they got things figured out.

“Yeah. I think that would be nice” Waverly’s smile held as she grabbed hold of one of Nicole’s hands. “And I still want Aunt Sheila in my life. I mean, the woman raised me. I can’t imagine her not being in my life in some way.”

“And I totally want to get to know her” Nicole nodded in agreement. “She is the only link to my parents and I know this hasn’t been easy on her, either. It will be cool to learn about my real family.”

“Totally” Waverly squeezed Nicole’s hand gently. She had suffered the sadness of not having living parents for her entire life so she knew exactly what Nicole was feeling when she thought about her real parents. “So maybe we can have, I don’t know, dinner or something with Michelle and Sheila on a regular basis? Maybe they will get along and eventually they will feel like sisters or something?”

Nicole laughed through her nose at the thought “One big, happy, really weird family dinner.”

“Well none of this is normal” Waverly shrugged, rolling her eyes at the thought. “But we’re going to make due, right?” When Nicole nodded in agreement, she smiled “I think it would be a lot easier to have a happy, although admittedly weird, family if everyone got along.”

“Does this mean I am going to have to buy everyone Christmas presents?” Nicole pouted playfully.

“I’m serious” Waverly swatted lightly at Nicole’s shoulder even though she was laughing. “The fact of the matter is that this is unfamiliar territory for just about everyone on Earth. We weren’t swapped back so we formed bonds with people we aren’t actually related to. That doesn’t mean they aren’t family. I mean, how many stories have you heard about people leaving their blood relatives behind and finding their family in a group of strangers.”

“I know” Nicole frowned slightly because it seemed like she had upset her girlfriend. “You’re right, we’re connected to these people whether we like it or not.” She sighed out at that “Although I still want nothing to do with Ward.”

“Me either” Waverly let out a burdened sigh. She, unfortunately, would never be able to accept that she shared blood with that terrible human being.

“Willa is pretty awful, too,” Nicole added with a nod. “I mean, just a heads up on that. She doesn’t come home a lot but when she does it’s almost like having two Wards around.”

“Great” Waverly grumbled. “I’m starting to think you got the sweet end of this deal.”

Nicole laughed at that as she shifted so she could slide her arm around Waverly’s shoulders. She pulled the girl up tightly against her in an attempt to comfort her “I dealt with them for sixteen years so I have a few tips and tricks to help get you through.”

Waverly glanced up at Nicole with a goofy grin on her lips. She touched a soft kiss to the underside of her chin before laying her head back against Nicole’s shoulder “I am grateful for the fact that I have you through all of this. I can’t imagine what this would be like if I had been swapped with someone I hated.”

Nicole chuckled very softly as she brought her cheek to rest against the top of Waverly’s head. Her hand around the girl moved up and down slowly along the side opposite of where she was pressed into her. They fell into a quiet contemplation as their minds processed what they had just decided and discussed. With a few questions answered, it seemed that made room for more unknowns. There didn’t appear to be an end to all of the questions this situation had brought about. 

Finally, Nicole broke the silence with a soft whisper “I feel like I don’t have a home to go back to.”

Waverly’s entire face curled into a frown as she pulled away from Nicole’s shoulder and looked up at her. She stared at her for a few seconds before giving her head a slight shake “Home isn’t a place, Nicole. Home is where you find love and I can assure you that there is at least one person in Purgatory waiting to welcome you home.”

Nicole lifted a hand to her cheek and quickly wiped at a tear that had slipped from her eye. She sniffled, trying to hold back the swell of emotions that had suddenly overwhelmed her. Her entire life she hadn’t felt like she belonged and she had been right. Now she was facing the reality of that truth. She didn’t have a place to call home. Waverly was right, though, in saying that Wynonna was, and always would be, her very definition of home.

“We’ll find an apartment” Waverly whispered as soothingly as she could. “Or we will live in my car, I don’t know. I do know, though, that we will find you a place to live. A place that you can, for the first time in your life, be carefree. I want nothing more than to make that possible for you.”

Nicole swallowed the stinging lump of tears that rose in her throat and nodded at Waverly’s words. She wiped another single tear from her cheek before letting out a sad sigh “You want to live together?”

Waverly, realizing now how what she had said sounded, let out a very soft laugh at herself. She bit nervously at her bottom lip as her thumb passed over the third stray tear that streaked down Nicole’s cheek. “I want to take control of my life and I know that means removing myself from a toxic situation. As much as I enjoyed growing up with Aunt Sheila, knowing the truth just makes it hard to look at her the same way, you know?” She sighed as her fingers pushed some stray hair back under the end of Nicole’s beanie “I want to be able to trust the people I live with every day. That is the only way to really feel at home, to feel safe and comfortable, and I don’t feel like that’s possible if I stay where I’m at. So…” She finally brought her eyes back to find Nicole’s gaze and smiled at her almost shyly before nodding just once “...yeah, I think living together might just be the right thing to do.”

Nicole was unable to contain the smile that lit up her face at that moment. She was having another one of those moments where she couldn’t believe this was her real life. “You realize that’s a pretty big step in any relationship let alone one this new and, well…” She gestured between the two of them before dropping her hand to her lap “...young. Are you sure this is a good idea?”

“This isn’t about our romantic relationship” Waverly was smiling, because Nicole was smiling, but her tone was serious. “This is about rebuilding and finding a healthy place to recover from this. It’s about seizing control of what comes next. It’s about, you know, family. Like, a really, really weird family.” She deflated and her smile curled down into a frown “Maybe you’re right and this is a terrible idea.”

“No, no, no, you’re right” Nicole felt bad she had upset her girlfriend. She cupped at one of Waverly’s cheek and held it gently, stroking her thumb across her cheek tenderly, as she spoke in a soft but honest tone. “You’re right that we need to get out of our current situation if we ever want to move past this with a clear head. I was just teasing you. Although, in all seriousness, that is a big step.”

“Well, let’s not make it about that” Waverly shook her head quickly. She dropped her eyes in search of Nicole’s hand. She took hold of it and held it tightly between both of hers before looking back up. When she saw her girlfriend’s eager and patient gaze waiting for whatever she said next, she felt her heart flutter. She knew all of this was absolutely crazy but there was something about the way that Nicole looked at her that cemented in her mind that this was the right thing. “It’ll be like we’re best friends and roommates. We can just hang out and make dinner every night and argue about who needs to do the dishes.”

Nicole laughed at that as her smile once more grew across her face “Roommates who do all of that stuff but makeout and sleep in the same bed are called girlfriends who live together.”

“Just shut up” Waverly half huffed, half laughed. “Focus, Nicole. We need to find a new home. We need a support system. We need somewhere to escape all of the craziness. Most importantly, we need one another. It only makes sense to put that all under one roof.”

“I get it” Nicole’s smile faded just a bit to show Waverly that she was taking it seriously. “You’re right. A fresh start will be nice. But-” She bit her lip almost nervously now, hesitating for just a moment, before letting out a heavy sigh “-Wynonna is going to hate me moving out.”

“She can come,” Waverly said as if that were no big deal to her. “She probably needs to get away from all this bullshit too. Besides, she’s the most important part of our new build-your-own family.”

“Really?” As many times as Waverly had managed to surprise Nicole over the past two weeks this was by far the most shocking thing she have ever said.

“Why not?” Waverly shrugged casually. “You two will still have one another, it will give she and I the chance to really bond like sisters, and she can help with the chores.”

Nicole couldn’t stop the loud laugh that burst through her mouth at the idea of Wynonna doing a chore.

“Fine, the cooking?” Waverly suggested.

This made Nicole laugh louder.

“Fine!” Waverly threw her hands up playfully in defeat. “She can make a mess, eat all the food, and make fun of us relentlessly.”

“Bingo” Nicole chuckled and tapped her nose to indicate Waverly had finally gotten it right.

Waverly tried to be annoyed at her girlfriend’s laughter but she simply couldn’t. She had an adorable laugh. Moreso, though, her laughter meant she was happy and that was the most important thing to Waverly. Their situation still sucked and they both had a long path to healing but in this moment it seemed like there was at least a little bit of light shining down on them. It gave her hope that they could get through this and come out a little less wounded than they went into it.

Nicole let out a happy sigh as her laughter died down. She leaned in and touched a very soft kiss against Waverly’s cheek before turning to look at the fire. She was quiet as she once more processed what they had just discussed. It was crazy how, even at the start of this conversation, she had felt finding any solution was hopeless but now she felt optimistic about what the future held. It was because of Waverly. The girl never failed to be completely amazing in the face of adversity. She glanced at her girlfriend and felt her heart flutter in her chest. She couldn’t believe after all she’d learn about her life she still felt lucky.

“You have your happy face on” Waverly whispered as her lips curled into a knowing smile.

“That would be because I am happy” Nicole stated without an ounce of hesitation. She shifted so she could wrap both of her arms around the girl. She pulled her into a tight embrace, touching a kiss to her cheek, before laying her head on Waverly’s shoulder. She held her tightly for a few long seconds before pulling back just enough to bring herself face to face with her girlfriend “You make me happy. Never doubt that for a second.”

“You’re pretty good at that yourself, you know,” Waverly whispered as her hand lifted to lightly touch Nicole's cheek. Her fingers traced the curve of her face gently, watching her fingertips dip into the dimple there, before her gaze shifted to find the same patient, loving eyes that were always waiting for her gaze. This caused her heart to flutter again before she whispered “I like knowing that I make you happy. I want to do that for as long as you’ll let me.”

“I want you to do it forever” Nicole couldn’t sit there, totally consumed with her dream girl, looking her straight in the eyes, and deny the truth. She would go to her grave loving Waverly. She knew without a doubt that this was the only girl she was meant to love and she hoped that Waverly somehow felt the same way.

“I’ll die trying” Waverly promised without hesitation before leaning in and capturing Nicole’s lips. She wanted her to physically feel just how deeply she meant the words. Waverly wasn’t sure what the future held but she knew she would do everything in her power to keep that promise and, as far as she could see, the only thing that would stop her from keeping it was her ceasing to live. That was the only thing powerful enough to get between her desire to love Nicole forever.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

“Wait, wait, Wynonna, slow down” Nicole spoke into her phone quickly, trying to calm down her sister on the other end. As soon as they had gotten back to a place with a signal, she had turned her phone back on and checked her messages. She knew something was up when she saw all of the notifications from Wynonna light up her phone.

“What’s wrong?” Waverly glanced over from the driver seat with concern on her face. They had woken up early, made breakfast over the fire, packed up the campsite, and gotten on the road back toward Purgatory.

“I don’t-” Nicole was cut off by Wynonna’s voice rising out of the phone and into the ear. She pulled the phone away from her face and tapped the screen to turn on the speaker phone.

“I’m serious, you two need to get back here ASAP. I tried to stall as long as I could but Waverly’s aunt started freaking out when she didn’t come home after a few days and now there’s a fricken manhunt going on.”

“I told her I was going on a school trip over the weekend” Waverly huffed out loudly. 

“Yeah, well, she’s not an idiot like Ward and Michelle. As soon as she saw a few of your classmates in town she made a call to the school. When she figured out there weren’t any trips planned she thought you ran away!” The phone speaker made a high-pitched screech as Wynonna’s voice rose.

“Well I kinda did” Waverly admitted with a shrug.

“I told you that you should have checked in,” Nicole grumbled at Waverly.

“Whatever” Waverly didn’t particularly like being scolded.

“Anyway, when she found out Nicole was gone too shit really blew up. They thought you two skipped town and changed your names and were never coming back. I told them you did because they were all dickbags for lying to you and, well, that made things worse” It was easy to tell by Wynonna’s tone that she was amused with herself.

“So this is your fault” Nicole, however, was not amused.

“I tried to tell them I was just kidding and that you two were on your honeymoon after eloping and that really didn’t go over well” Wynonna snickered at herself now.

“Wynonna!” Waverly gasped. She didn’t know why she was surprised by how careless the girl was with her words but she was.

“Yeah, sorry I totally outed you like that” Wynonna sounded genuinely apologetic. “You and Auntie totally need to have a long talk now, by the way.”

Nicole pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a heavy exhale. “So you’re telling me your dumbass made this situation so much worse than it had to be?”

“I said I’m sorry” Wynonna grunted out even though she hadn’t really apologized. “It’s not my fault these douche canoes can’t take a joke.”

“You didn’t think that, just once, being serious was a good idea?” Nicole’s hand fell from her face and she scowled at her phone as she nearly yelled the words out.

“Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t think they would care this much. Just-” Wynonna paused as a tired sigh left her lips. For the first time since the beginning of this she was starting to show the toll it was taking on her. “-promise me you two are on your way home?”

“We’ll be back in a few hours,” Nicole said more softly now. She felt bad for snapping at her sister. She knew Wynonna had done a lot for them and put a lot on the line to help them get away for the weekend. She had to remember that, even though her methods were unorthodox and often infuriating, Wynonna was on their side. 

“Hurry” Wynonna mumbled before hanging up.

“She can’t help but to ruffle feathers, can she?” Waverly snorted in annoyance.

“I think it’s genetic,” Nicole mumbled as her hand reached over to lightly rest against Waverly’s leg. “Don’t be too mad at her. She’s the one that made this whole getaway possible.”

“Yeah, I know, that’s why I’m only mildly annoyed that she told Sheila that we’re dating” Waverly gritted her teeth as she spoke in an attempt to keep herself calm. She drew in a sharp breath, held it, then let it out slowly. “I wasn’t prepared to have that conversation yet.”

“Well, and this may surprise you, but Ward is a total homophobe so now he can add this to the list of reasons to be a complete ass zit to me” Nicole knew it didn’t help but at least Aunt Sheila wouldn’t hate Waverly for dating a girl. At least she didn’t think she would. Again, she didn’t know the woman very well but with how open-minded Waverly was she couldn’t imagine the person who had raised her was bigoted in the slightest.

“Great, my father hates me” Waverly grumbled and glanced at Nicole with a frown.

“Join the club” Nicole felt bad. She didn’t really know what else to say so she just sat there, ready to listen if Waverly needed to vent. That didn’t happen, though. In fact, they spent most of the rest of the drive in silence as they made their way back into the brown eye of the shitstorm that was their lives.

~.~.~.~.~.~.


	18. "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet"

Nicole sat up a little straighter as they approached the Earp Homestead slowly. Wynonna had asked them to give her a heads up when they were close so she could meet them outside. As they pulled up to the property it was easy to see that there were more vehicles there than usual and Nicole was immediately worried.

“Stop here” She said quickly, not wanting Waverly to pull all that way into the drive. If shit hit the fan, which she felt like it might, she wanted them to be able to make a quick escape.

“Everything alright?” Waverly parked the car and glanced at Nicole with a concerned frown.

“No” Nicole unbuckled her seatbelt and motioned to all the cars. “Look. Ward is here, Michelle is here, Sheila’s car-” Her hand moved from one vehicle to the next as she pointed them all out “-and what looks like two additional police cruisers.” This realization made her panic and she finally tore her eyes away from the vehicles to look at Waverly with wide eyes “They can’t arrest us for this, can they?”

“Kids run away all the time” Waverly gave a dismissive flick of her hand at the thought. “Maybe they were about to send out a search team or something.”

Suddenly a loud knock came to Nicole’s window. Both girls screamed in fright.

“Shit” Nicole put a hand to her heart and turned to roll down her window. She scowled at her sister “You need to stop doing that.”

“I thought you saw me” Wynonna shrugged it off before motioning to the house behind her. “Apparently Bitch Baby Ward found out that you two know about the switch and got his panties all in a twist. He was going to track you two down and threaten you to stay quiet…” She trailed off with a disgusted shake of her head because, well, the man’s ability to continuously become a worse human being than he was the day before was really astounding. “I stalled as long as I could. I’m just glad you two got back before he found you.”

“Are you fucking serious?” Nicole felt a surge of rage take over her body. She was done dealing with that man and his selfish motives for everything. It was clear he didn’t care about anyone but himself.

“He’s a small man with a large ego” Wynonna huffed out. 

“Wait, Nicole, what are you doing?” Waverly’s eyes went wide when she saw the girl getting out of the car.

“We’re going inside” Nicole growled furiously. “We’re putting an end to all of this. Take control of our own lives, remember?” She softened just a bit when she set her eyes on her girlfriend. This wasn’t her fault and she didn’t want to snap at her but she also did not want to lose the angry momentum that was coursing through her. “I am so sick of him dictating what everyone around him can say or do. I’m not playing his game anymore.”

“Okay, yeah, totally. But wait for me!” Waverly scrambled to get her seatbelt off.

“Damn, Patch, that was one Hell of a speech” Wynonna smirked, patting the girl on the back proudly.

“I’m serious” Nicole’s face held determination in her creased brow and downturned lips. “This is the end. I’m done.”

“Let’s go” Waverly gave a nod as she joined the other two.

The three of them turned toward the Homestead and just like they were marching into battle they held their heads high and narrowed their focus on the house. This was it. The confrontation that had been looming for longer than they had realized was here. This is when they get answers, they get results, and they get to put a stop to everyone else calling the shots.

Nicole stopped just outside the house, putting her arms out on each side of her to stop the other two that were walking beside her. She then reached down, grabbed a chunk of frozen snow and rocks, and hurled it at the door of the Homestead. She then set her hands on her hips and a scowl on her face in an attempt to look intimidating while she waited for the adults to come out.

“You little shit” Ward growled when he saw the dent the ice chunk had made in the front door. He stormed out and off the porch, rushing over to Nicole, his hand lifted and his finger pointed. “You ungrateful little-”

“If you ever wanna use this finger to scratch your asshole again you’ll stop right there” Wynonna hand reacted in a flash, reaching out and snatching the finger out of midair. She twisted her father’s hand and tightened her grip around his finger. Her eyes burned with the disdain she held for him as she tried her best to snap his finger right off his hand.

“You’re just as ungrateful. I should have you sent to prison. You’re nothing but troub- OUCH!” Ward yelped in pain when Wynonna wringed his wrist so fiercely it was a miracle it didn’t snap.

“Let him go, young lady” Michelle rushed over and pulled at Ward’s shoulders. “Violence isn’t going to solve anything.”

“But it feels so good” Wynonna growled before releasing her father’s wrist, lifting her hand up to show that she no longer had a hold of him.

“Everyone listen up”' Nicole looked at all the adults that had come from the Homestead. There were a few uniformed officers standing behind Ward, who had taken a few retreating steps backwards, as well as a guy in a suit that Nicole didn’t recognize. Then her eyes fell to Sheila and for just a split second she felt sad. The woman hadn’t intentionally gotten mixed up in this. But, then Nicole remembered she had willingly agreed to keep the switch a secret and her anger returned. “The truth is out now and there’s no going back. So this is what’s going to happ-”

“Please, can we go inside and talk this through?” Michelle interrupted, setting a pleading gaze on Nicole. “Sweetie, let’s go discuss this and figure it out.”

“No” Nicole snapped at the woman. “No, you guys-” She motioned to the Earps, then to Sheila, before dropping her hands “-had your way for long enough. It’s our turn to decide” She glanced at Waverly on her left and gave a single, confident nod. “This is our life and we get a say in how we live it.”

“You’re children,” Ward hissed.

“Shut up” Wynonna growled.

“Waverly, Nicole, please just calm down” Sheila moved forward and spoke up now.

Suddenly everyone had an opinion and they were all expressing them at the same time. The voices of the adults all criss crossed over the snowy ground they all encircled. The more people that spoke the louder it got. Ward was shouting at Sheila, Michelle was trying to calm him down, the uniformed officers were stepping in to try and keep the peace. The three girls stood there watching and in that moment it was easy to see how this entire thing had become so messy. No one cared to listen to anyone else.

“Stop” Waverly shouted but no one heard her. She looked around the circle of adults all shouting and she shook her head before focusing on Nicole. “This is pointless.”

“No” Nicole, still holding onto her determination to put an end to it, shook her head. She looked around to try and find a way to get everyone’s attention. That’s when she saw the unmistakable butt of Peacemaker sticking out of Wynonna’s boot. She reached down, slid the gun from the boot, held it high in the air, and pulled the trigger.

Silence. Everyone, stunned by the gunshot, whirled around toward the sound with wide, surprised expressions.

“I’ve never been so proud” Wynonna pretended to sniffle and wipe a tear from her eye as she once more patted Nicole firmly on the back.

Nicole looked a little surprised at herself. She glanced at the gun in her hand, as if she had not been in control of the action she had just taken, before blinking and turning to Wynonna. She basically tossed the gun at her sister before looking back to the group of stunned adults “Now that I have your attention. This is how it’s gonna-”

“You have no right handling an Earp family heirloom” Ward spat, once more disregarding the fact that Nicole was speaking.

“If you don’t keep your mouth shut-”

“No!” Waverly stepped up, putting her hand on Nicole’s chest to stop her from lunging at Ward before she looked at the man herself. “If there is anyone here that lost the right to the Earp legacy, it’s you. You’re pathetic. You’re manipulative. You’re a liar and a murderer!”

Stunned silence once more blanketed the chaotic scene outside the Homestead. Ward visibly deflated. There was a flash of shame that washed over his face. There was a shift in energy and it seemed like the adults finally realized that there was no more denying what they had done had been terrible.

Nicole reached out and took hold of Waverly’s hand. She knew the pain and anger that was coursing through her girlfriend’s veins. She felt it too. She hoped that somehow this confrontation could be cathartic and help them on the path to healing.

“You don’t have any idea what you’re on about, girl” Ward tried to sound mean but Waverly’s words had really dealt a blow to his ego.

“Oh will you shut the Hell up” Michelle growled and shoved Ward away from her. “You been holding onto your denial far too long and it’s about time you face the music.”

“You’re all going to face the music” Nicole cut in before there could be another eruption of argument between the adults. When she realized she had everyone’s attention again, she drew in a deep breath and tried to speak confidently “You’re going to make this as right as you can” Nicole motioned to Ward and Michelle with a single nod. “No more excuses or lies.” She glanced at Waverly, letting her firm stare fade just slightly in favor of giving the girl a tiny smile. She then looked to her right and nodded at Wynonna because she knew without her by her side she wouldn’t have been able to get this far.

“I’m no longer going to be living under the Earp’s roof” She stated plainly as her eyes lifted back to the group. 

“Wait, what the Hell” Wynonna grabbed onto Nicole’s arm and pulled to get her attention. “You’re leaving me?”

“I’m leaving them” Nicole motioned to Ward and Michelle. “And I’m finding a new home, a place where I belong, and I want you to come with.”

The invitation to join Nicole immediately melted the hurt that had taken over Wynonna’s features. She lifted her eyebrows on her forehead in interest as she considered the idea “Just you and me?”

“And me” Waverly spoke up now as her eyes shifted from Wynonna to where Sheila stood. She saw the hurt look on the woman’s face and she let out a sad sigh as she took a step toward her “I’m sorry but I need some space to figure out who I am.”

“I understand” The woman’s voice was weak, filled with sadness, but her eyes showed that she was sincere.

“This is ridiculous” Ward huffed, almost laughing at what they were saying. “You’re minors, no one in their right mind will rent to you. Not in my town.”

“Well according to this ID, I’m 21” Nicole held up the fake ID that Wynonna had provided her.

“Aww, Ophelia” Wynonna looked flattered that her sister had actually used the very illegal ID card. “Plus” she then turned her attention back to Ward “I’m 18, you knob gobbler, so I can do whatever the Hell I want.”

“And, technically, Waverly Jones doesn’t exist” Waverly stated now with a little shrug of her shoulders. “So I can be whoever I want.”

“I can get you an ID, too. How do you feel about the name Anita Gettawf?” Wynonna pointed to Waverly then shrugged at her suggestion.

Waverly rolled her eyes but smirked because it was kind of funny.

“No” Nicole shook her head at Wynonna and held her hand out to stop her from talking. She turned her attention back to the Earps “You’re going to make this right. All of you” She motioned to Sheila but didn’t look away from Ward and Michelle. “You’re going to undo whatever it is you did to bury Waverly’s existence. You’re going to find her real birth certificate and change all of her records so they reflect her real name, her real birthdate.” She glanced at Waverly as if questioning whether or not that's what she wanted.

Waverly nodded in agreement then slowly moved her eyes to her real parents. “I don’t know if I’ll end up keeping the name but for now all of my identification paperwork will have my legal name as Earp. Deal?”

Ward opened his mouth to say something but Michelle threw a sharp elbow into his ribs to quiet him before speaking gently “Of course, darling. Whatever you want.”

Waverly gave Michelle a weak smile. She knew the woman was hurting too. Everyone was hurting. Everyone but Ward. His ego and reputation were bruised but the man showed no sign of remorse.

“And I want you charged” Nicole blurted out as she realized Ward was standing there looking as though this were all a joke.

Ward scoffed as a smirk came to his lips “Good luck with that.”

“No, I agree” Sheila stepped forward now, suddenly finding some sense of strength at the mention of Ward’s prosecution for the murder of her sister.

“You can’t” Ward snarled at the woman. “You signed an NDA. You press charges and you’ll be sued.”

“Technically, she hasn’t broken the NDA” The random man in the suit spoke up for the first time. He stepped down off the porch where he had been huddled watching everything unfold. He looked around the group then circled around to focus on Ward. “She only disclosed the information once the children came forward with questions. She upheld her end of the deal and now has no legal obligation to keep quiet.”

Nicole’s face lit with a new wave of hope at the words. She nodded in agreement with the stranger as she gestured to the woman who was her aunt “We want you charged with vehicular manslaughter at the very least.”

“You destroyed my family and hid behind your connections with law enforcement” Sheila’s strength in demanding what was right seemed to be growing with each word she said. “My sister deserves justice” She glanced at Nicole and her eyes filled with a soft longing for the girl before she nodded “My niece deserves justice.”

“Case was ruled an accident and closed” Ward puffed up proudly as if that were something to brag about.

“I advise you to shut up” The man in the suit spoke to Ward in a hushed tone and it was obvious in that moment that he was the attorney that had helped cover everything up all those years ago.

“And I want all the money you took from the hospital as hush money” Waverly stepped forward now much to her own surprise. Hey, if they were going after Ward they might as well bleed him dry, right? 

Ward snickered at the thought “There is no way you can prove I covered anything up or accepted any money.”

“I have proof” Sheila motioned to herself as she felt a wave of anger taking over. She had held onto her frustration and pain since the moment she had found out about what Ward had done to her family. “I’ll expose it all.”

“You can’t” The color drained from Ward’s face. He looked terrified. He glanced at the lawyer then back at Sheila, then to Michelle, before shaking his head. “None of this will stand. You can’t do this.”

“She can” The lawyer whispered but everyone heard it.

“No” Ward’s head started shaking slowly but picked up speed as the reality of what was happening began to register “You can’t do this!”

Wynonna couldn’t help but to laugh at her father’s panic. 

“You’re not welcome here” Ward pushed off the lawyer and Michelle, who were both trying to hold him back, and charged at Nicole.

Nicole froze like a deer in the headlights.

Waverly dropped to crouching quickly and swept her foot out in a roundhouse kick, connecting with the back of his knees.

At the same time, Wynonna stepped up and clotheslined him right in the throat. The combination of the two blows sent the man to the ground, landing with a loud thud on his back. The impact knocked the wind out of him and the blow to his throat made it hard for him to breathe. Ward curled into a ball, clutching at his throat, desperately gasping for air.

Wynonna looked completely impressed as Waverly stood upright again and brushed her hands together to rid them of the dirty snow that had gathered there when she crouched down. “Sweet moves, Kemosabe.” She laughed as she offered her hand out for a high five.

“Three years of self-defense” Waverly shrugged it off as her hand swung out and connected with Wynonna’s. 

“Nah, that was total Earp-instinct” Wynonna slid her arm around Waverly’s shoulders as they turned their backs on the circle of adults. “You might be a little cooler than I first thought.”

“You think?” Waverly scoffed out a laugh and threw a soft elbow into Wynonna’s ribs.

“I told you she wasn’t that bad” Nicole grumbled at her sister. She waited for the other two to draw even with her before stepping and sliding her arm around Wavery’s shoulders from the other side. The three of them walked that way, away from the reeling adults, letting them argue about what to do next, while they focused on starting the next chapter in their new lives.

As they reached Waverly’s car, they all slid apart. Wynonna glanced over her shoulder and gave a disappointed shake of her head before looking back to the other two. She lifted an eyebrow in questioning before gesturing with a single finger between her two sisters “So I’m shacking up with you two, then?”

“Only if you want to,” Nicole said almost nervously. She suddenly wasn’t sure what Wynonna thought of the plan.

“I have some conditions,” Wynonna lifted her pointed finger, using it to gesture to both girls again, as if making a point before she even spoke. “But, I think we can work something out.”

“Oh good, I was worried” Nicole mumbled sarcastically and rolled her eyes in fake annoyance. She had been worried but she did not want Wynonna to know that. 

“So now what?” Waverly asked, casting her eyes back and forth between the other two before giving a clueless shrug. “Where do we go from here?”

“Pizza” Wynonna stated matter-of-factly as her hands came down to clap both Waverly and Nicole on the back.

The girls jolted forward from the impact. Nicole growled and pulled herself away from her sister “Fine, but you’re buying.”

“You still have that bag of cash?” Wynonna gestured to the car where she could clearly see the duffle bag in the back seat.

“Waverly!” The call came from behind the girls and they all whirled around at the same time.

When Waverly saw Sheila approaching slowly, she glanced at the other two “Maybe you two should go ahead and I’ll catch up.”

“Are you sure?” Nicole’s tone was full of concern.

Waverly nodded just once. Her gaze met Nicole’s, silently telling her that she was alright.

Nicole understood without another word so she turned to Wynonna and gestured toward her truck “You’re driving.”

“So, did you guys bang over the weekend?” Wynonna’s question was not quiet at all as she moved her arm around Nicole and started to lead her to the truck.

The last thing Waverly heard was Nicole groaning at the question before she turned back to find the woman who had raised her standing a few feet away. She drew in a deep breath because she was suddenly nervous. Throughout this entire discovery process she had been going back and forth on her feelings toward the woman. She still didn’t know where she stood. She did know, however, that she cared for her and did not want to shut her out. So she swallowed her nerves and took a step toward her “Thank you for standing up for us.”

“I should have done it in the first place” The woman shook her head with shame. “I am so sorry I put you through this. And Nicole-” She gestured to where Wynonna was pulling onto the road and heading away from the Homestead “-Neither of you deserved to be put through this.”

“You can’t take back what you did but you can make amends. Today was the first step” Waverly motioned weakly toward where the showdown had taken place. 

“I’m going to do everything in my power” The woman agreed with a nod. She let out a heavy sigh and gently chewed at her bottom lip. She looked nervous, almost like she didn’t know what to say or how to act now. Her eyes were filled with regret. She knew there was no way to undo the pain she had caused and she was at a loss on how to go about expressing how sorry she was.

“Um, about Nicole” Waverly did not want to stand in awkward silence because that didn’t accomplish anything. She instead gestured blindly behind her to wherever Nicole was and cleared her throat “I know Wynonna revealed a few things to you and I just wanted to let you know-”

“You don’t need to explain” Sheila spoke softly as a smile crept over her features. She stepped closer, daring to close the gap between them slightly, before reaching out for Waverly’s hand. She wouldn’t take it from her. She wanted the girl to choose to accept the gesture. She had already made too many decisions for her, it was up to Waverly now.

Waverly felt a nervous flutter in her chest when the woman seemed to accept her relationship with Nicole without explanation. When the hand was extended toward her, Waverly smiled just slightly and accepted the gesture by placing it between both of her hands. She gave a squeeze and felt relief flooding her body “She’s incredible.”

Sheila let out a soft laugh and nodded in agreement “The way she stood up to Ward back there?” Her smile grew and a fondness filled her eyes “Reminded me of my sister. She wasn’t afraid to stand up for what she believed in.”

Waverly pulled the hand she held until the woman was right up against her. She wrapped her arms around her and hugged her tightly. She didn’t know what the future held but she felt a sense of relief knowing she still had Sheila in her life and, most importantly, on her team.

“I’m sorry” The woman choked up as soon as Waverly pulled her into the hug.

“I forgive you” Waverly whispered against the woman’s ear as her arms tightened. She needed this embrace more than she knew how to say. The biggest heartbreak throughout this entire ordeal had been learning that the one person in life she trusted most had lied to her. She knew it was a wound she would carry forever but she also knew the first step toward healing was forgiveness.

They stayed in the embrace for a few more seconds. When they parted, they both wiped a tear from their eye before Sheila motioned to Waverly’s car “You should go be with your friends.”

“My girlfriend and my sister, technically” Waverly said with a laugh because it still sounded weird. Well, the sister part. The girlfriend part sounded great.

The older woman gave a nod of agreement as a tender smile moved across her lips “Go. If you need me at all, you know where to find me.”

Waverly smiled and dipped her head in a single nod of acknowledgement. She fished out her keys and headed for her car. She paused in opening the door and looked behind her to see the woman watching her. She offered her a tiny wave before finally pulling her door open and getting in. She let out a heavy sigh as she started her engine. She knew this was far from over but at least now she had a sense of calm about it all. As she drove away, watching the woman’s size fade in her rearview mirror she realized she had not lost the only person she had ever known as family but rather chosen to accept her into the new family she was making for herself and that was something she hadn’t known she had needed until that very moment.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

“Are you sure you wanna do this?” Nicole picked nervously at the wrapper that her straw had come in as she watched Wynonna skim the newspaper on the table across from her.

“I told you, Patch, I’ve been dreaming of this day for years” Wynonna let out a soft laugh and glanced up from what she had been doing. She looked Nicole over slowly then shook her head and reached for a mozzarella stick before returning her focus to the newspaper. “You and I, out on our own, causing shenanigans. We could be a hit sitcom.”

“I meant with Waverly” Nicole rolled her eyes at Wynonna’s inability to take anything seriously. “I know you and I could live together, we’ve been doing it our entire lives. But this kind of complicates things.”

“Eh” Wynonna just shrugged the subject off as she circled something on the paper. She lifted her eyes just enough to see Nicole looked worried. This made her sigh in annoyance and drop her pen. “Okay, fine, it wasn’t what I envisioned. But, listen” She reached for another mozzarella stick, took a bite, then spoke while chewing. “I want to live with my little sister and, guess what, Waverly is my little sister. So, yeah” She shrugged and stuffed the rest of the mozzarella stick in her mouth, smiling as she chewed.

“Gross” Nicole groaned at the fact that she had seen all of the mushed food in Wynonna’s mouth as she spoke. She shook her head and looked back down at the wrapper between her fingers. She tore a few pieces off and when Wynonna went quiet again she lifted her eyes to watch her once more. A slight smile came to her lips. She could see that deep down, Wynonna was as excited as a kid in a candy shop.

“Oh, the Gardner mansion is for sale” Wynonna’s eyes widened and she looked back with a wild sense of enthusiasm in her eyes. “You think we can afford it?”

“No, absolutely not” Nicole laughed because the idea was ridiculous.

“Maybe Mercedes can convince her parents to rent it to us?” Wynonna’s face moved from excited to curious.

“I still don’t think we can afford that,” Nicole shook her head. “How are we going to pay rent and go to school at the same time?”

“Well, I’m almost done” Wynonna put a hand on her chest to indicate herself. It was nearly February, she still had months before graduation, but that didn’t matter to her. “Besides, you and other sister are getting a big old chunk of change from Ward.”

“You really think he will pay up?” Nicole seemed interested in that idea. She honestly didn’t think the man would meet any of the demands they had made. Not while he was still breathing, at least.

“Gonna let you in on a little secret, Red” Wynonna mumbled without looking up from pursuing the newspaper once more. “All those settlement payments he’s been getting from the hospital? Dumbass put them in a different name so the IRS couldn’t tax him.”

“What name?” Nicole’s brows creased in confusion.

“Waverly Earp” Wynonna snickered as a wicked smirk took over her features. She lifted her eyes now and pointed at her sister with the end of the pen. “Since they buried her existence he figured he would open the account as if it were a savings trust in his daughter’s name, put himself as the responsible adult on the account, then withdraw all the money right before she turned eighteen.”

“How do you know that?” Nicole felt herself starting to panic. Was it possible he had heard what happened and taken all the money from the hospital out so that Waverly couldn’t touch it? It wasn’t really about the money but it would definitely be nice to have so they didn’t have to work and go to school.

“I’ve been hacking his shit for years. As soon as I learned about the switch and the settlement I poked around to see what I could find. He had it hidden in his porn folder-” Wynonna paused and shuttered at the thought of her father watching porn “-but I eventually found it. Luckily he doesn’t know I know.”

Nicole’s mouth felt dry and her head was swimming. She thought she might faint.

“Sorry I’m late” Waverly came rushing up to the table just then, a little breathless from hurrying inside. She looked at Wynonna, wondering what she was smirking about, before her eyes fell to Nicole. When she saw all the color was gone from her cheeks, her heart immediately jumped into her throat “Oh no, what happened?”

“She’s panicking” Wynonna said casually as if it happened a lot. It did. Nicole always got that panicky look when something didn’t go to plan.

“About what?” Waverly didn’t appreciate Wynonna’s cavalier attitude about the fact that Nicole looked like she was about to pass out.

“Sit down, other sister, we have some things to discuss” Wynonna gestured to the seat next to Nicole.

“Are you going to call me that forever?” Waverly grumbled as she sat next to Nicole, rubbing her back softly as she did. “Are you okay?”

“It’s better than snitch, right?” Wynonna offered with a shrug.

“He’s going to do something, I know it. He’s going to pull some strings and get away with all of it” Nicole seemed to have returned from her temporary out of body experience once she heard Waverly’s voice.

“Calm down. Tell me what happened” Waverly spoke tenderly, trying to ease Nicole’s worry.

“Relax, Red” Wynonna mumbled around a mouthful of mozzarella sticks again. “As soon as I realized what that snake was up to, I made some moves.”

Both girls slowly looked across the table at Wynonna. Waverly looked curious. Nicole looked like she was just waiting for bad news.

“Long story short-” She paused as the server approached. “Yeah, loaded large for me and, I dunno, cardboard for her?” She motioned at Waverly and shrugged like she expected her to agree.

“The vegan specialty, please” Waverly said politely to the server. Once the girl walked away, Waverly scowled across the table “You are one of the most obnoxious people I’ve ever met.”

Wynonna mocked the words Waverly said, scrunching her nose and eyes together as she opened and closed her mouth, silently repeating what the girl had just said. She then rolled her eyes and returned her face to normal before shifting her focus back to Nicole “Anyway, long story short, I logged into the bank using his password and transferred all the funds to a new account.”

“Okay, first of all, I’m pretty sure that’s stealing” Nicole huffed, seemingly being shaken from her lingering panic by Wynonna’s constant need to be annoying. “Secondly, don’t you think he’s realized that by now and is doing everything he can to get it back?”

“And how do you know how to hack?” Waverly chimed in now.

“I’m observant,” Wynonna pointed at Waverly as if making her point clear. “He’s been using the same password for everything for as long as he’s had passwords.” She then shifted to look at Nicole and gave her a smile “It doesn’t matter if he realizes what’s happened. I was logged in under his credentials, on his computer, during work hours. The money went to an account he can’t touch. There is no way he can prove it wasn’t him that authorized the transfer.”

“I don’t like it” Nicole shook her head firmly and crossed her arms as if putting a period on the statement. 

“It’s kind of ingenious,” Waverly said through an impressed laugh.

“Thank you, other sister” Wynonna dipped her head like she was tipping her hat at Waverly before once more looking at Nicole. “Look, do you want the cash or not? Because as far as I’m concerned he owes it to you. Now instead of a long, drawn out court battle you can just have it.”

“It’s shady and aren’t we trying to, you know, move out of the shade?” Nicole used both hands in a forward gesture.

“What’s done is done” Wynonna shrugged. “He can’t get the money. You might as well use it.”

Waverly moved her hand, resting it against Nicole’s thigh. She looked up at her girlfriend with a look that told her she thought it was a good idea. She shrugged, looking a lot like Wynonna when she did, before shaking her head “What’s done is done, Nicole. We can’t change the past, remember? All we can do is look to the future.”

Nicole almost couldn’t believe that Waverly was on board with the plan. She let out a distressed sounding sigh and opened her mouth to argue but was stopped by the pleading look from her girlfriend. She realized in that moment that the last thing Waverly wanted was the emotional turmoil a legal battle would undoubtedly bring upon them all. This was just easier. It probably wasn’t legal, but what else could she really do?

She eventually gave in with a heavy sigh gesturing and a flick of her hand toward Wynonna to let her know she was in “Fine. But no more shady shit after this.”

“You know I can’t make that promise” Wynonna snickered as her hands clapped the top of the table a few times excitedly. She then stood just enough to lean across the table, grabbed hold of Nicole’s face, tilted it forward, and placed a loud pop of a kiss to her forehead before plopping back down in her seat. “I knew you’d give in, Red! You can’t say no to me!”

“Ugh” Nicole grunted as she wiped away the slobber from the obnoxious kiss to her forehead.

“So whose name did you put the account in?” Waverly asked curiously.

Wynonna’s smile faded from excited to tender as her eyes landed on Nicole. She gave a single nod as she held her hand toward her sister, as if displaying the girl, before she spoke gently “Nicole Haught.”

Nicole felt her heart flip in her chest. It was the first time she had been addressed by her real name. Her body warmed with an immediate sense of belonging. Although she hadn’t yet made up her mind about which name she would use going forward, it was clear at that moment what her choice would be. Just hearing it sounded right. She smiled slightly, nodding her head once, as she reached across the table to grab hold of her sister’s hand. She squeezed it and spoke with certainty “I like the sound of that.”

~.~.~.~.~.

_6 month later…_

Wynonna kicked in the door of the apartment that she shared with Nicole and Waverly “Cover up, I’m home!”

Nicole sat up from the couch and turned to look over the back of it toward the door. She looked a little frazzled and surprised by the sudden appearance of her sister.

“Oh, shit, you two really were messing around? I was just kidding” Wynonna faked a sympathetic look as she kicked the door closed with her heel and threw her keys onto the table right next to the designated key bowl.

“No we weren’t” Waverly appeared in the hallway, a towel in hand, squeezing at her hair in an attempt to dry it. She very obviously had just gotten done showering. At least she had been dressed this time. Last time Wynonna had burst through the door like that she had been on a mid-naked run across the house to find a towel.

“Oh, you’re dressed this time” Wynonna smirked at Waverly then motioned with the mail she held toward Nicole. “Then why does she look like she just got caught with her hand in the cookie jar.”

“I was sleeping” Nicole huffed as she smoothed a hand through her hair and turned around so she had her knees in the cushions and she was facing the back of the couch fully. “Why do you insist on coming in like that? You’re going to break the door one day.”

“Then the landlord will fix it” Wynonna mocked Nicole’s lecturing tone with one of her own.

“Anyway” Waverly, who had grown used to Wynonna’s shenanigans and often played peacemaker between the other two, tossed her towel to the side and moved to lean against the back of the couch next to where Nicole was “You do that when you have some sort of announcement so what is it?”

Wynonna stuck her tongue out at Nicole.

Nicole returned the gesture.

Waverly smirked. She didn’t even have to turn around to know Nicole had done so.

“I hold in my hands-” Wynonna waved the large envelope she had gotten from the mailbox then turned it around so she could work on opening the seal “-what looks like a couple very important documents.”

The mood immediately shifted. Nicole went from annoyed to excited. She sat up onto her knees a bit taller and reached over the back of the couch “Come on, let me see it!”

“No” Wynonna pulled the envelope out of Nicole’s reach and stuck her tongue out again.

“You know opening someone else’s mail is a Federal offense?” Nicole huffed and sank down into the couch as she folded her arms in a pout.

“Add it to the list of the many, many crimes I have gotten away with” Wynonna smirked as she slipped a few papers out of the large manilla envelope she had been fussing with. She took a moment to look over the first few papers before moving them to the back of the stack “Blah, blah, blah, legal jargon legal jargon…” She mumbled as she quickly moved through papers. Finally, when she found what she was looking for, she lit up with a smile and removed it from the stack. She held it up proudly, giving it a little wiggle in her hands, before finally offering it out toward Nicole “That one is yours…”

Nicole was quick to snatch the paper from her sister’s grip.

“Rude” Wynonna grumbled at the action before grabbing the next paper from the stack. She looked at Waverly and a little less sarcastically she held it out toward her “This one belongs to you.”

“My actual birth certificate?” Waverly’s eyes went wide. She looked at the paper delicately, as if looking too hard would cause it to go up in flames.”

“The genuine article” Wynonna nodded as her eyes fell to the document. She could see Waverly still seemed to be a little timid in believing it was real so she took it upon herself to read it outloud. “This here, blah blah blah, on this date at this time, blah blah blah, born to the mother and father so named blah blah blah…” She then turned the certificate around so Waverly could see it. “Baby Girl Earp” She laughed a little then peeked over the top of the document so she could see where she was tapping on the paper. Her finger pointed out the legal amendment to the certificate so it would reflect her actual name and she grinned “Certified by whatever Federal powers that be, you are now officially born. Welcome to the world, Waverly Earp.”

“Aww baby” Nicole cooed as she reached up and rubbed Waverly’s back gently. “You really exist now.”

“Don’t call her that” Wynonna looked disgusted. She hated that the two of them called one another baby incessantly.

“I exist” Waverly felt herself choking up with emotions.

“Don’t you fucking cry, Baby Girl Earp” Wynonna growled the words playfully. She wasn’t really trying to be mean about it, because she knew this was important to her sister, but she also did not want to deal with tears.

“Leave her alone” Nicole sighed as her annoyance toward her sister returned.

Wynonna rolled her eyes. She was so sick of Nicole always taking Waverly’s side. Actually, that wasn’t fair. Waverly and Wynonna didn’t argue very often, which was kind of a surprise, but on the few occasions where Nicole had to mediate she had done so fairly and sided with whoever was right. It was usually Waverly but on the times that Wynonna was right Nicole had admitted it.

Waverly finally got a hold of herself. She clutched the document to her chest, wiped a tear from her cheek, then looked over at Nicole with a smile. “What do you have?”

“Mine’s not nearly as cool as yours” Nicole laughed, giving a casual shrug as she showed Waverly her document. “It’s just my official emancipation. I am no longer legally an Earp.”

“Technically, you haven’t been an Earp for months” Wynonna mumbled to herself.

Nicole heard it and cast a sideways scowl at her. She knew that her sister was bummed that Nicole had changed her last name to Haught as soon as possible. Even if they didn’t share blood, they had shared the same last name for sixteen years and Wynonna couldn’t help but feel that this meant she was losing Nicole no matter how many times the girl insisted that was not the case. “You and I both know there is some Earp inside of me.”

“Yeah, Waverly” Wynonna gestured to her other sister quickly then braced for impact.

The other two both swung at the same time, slapping the eldest sister with the back of their hands together.

Wynonna laughed, then hissed, as she rubbed both of her upper arms where the slaps had landed. “What?”

Nicole rolled her eyes before shifting her gaze back to her girlfriend “Anyway, I’m really happy you finally have your real birth certificate.”

“It’s a little surreal to see it in print” Waverly admitted as her eyes fell back to the document. “But it’s nice to actually exist.”

“Blah blah blah” Wynonna was done with all the mushy stuff. “You’re a real boy, Pinocchio-” She threw her hand in a gesture to Waverly before whipping it to point at Nicole “-and you’re a free elf, Dobby. Now, what’s for dinner?”

“It’s your turn” Nicole motioned to her sister then turned back around on the couch. She got to her feet and headed across the living room toward two empty frames on the wall. She delicately took them down then glanced over her shoulder. “And no more pizza. We eat that like three times a week. Pick something else or, I don’t know, cook something?”

“Do I look like I know what a pan is?” Wynonna snorted as she dug out her phone. “Gonna order pizza.”

Nicole once more rolled her eyes. She wondered if there would ever come a time where she was not totally annoyed by her sister. She kind of hoped not. It was the very essence of what made them who they are and she was thankful it was still intact. It was just further proof that you didn’t need to share blood to be family.

“I feel like I’ve been staring at these empty frames for years” Waverly spoke softly as she approached Nicole with a soft smile. “I can’t believe it’s finally time to fill them up.”

“We’ve earned this” Nicole cast a smile at her girlfriend as she removed the backing to one of the frames.

“Hey, babygirl, you still hate meat?” Wynonna yelled even though the living room was not that big.

“You know I do” Waverly answered without hesitation. She then handed Nicole her birth certificate and nodded. “I think she found a new nickname for me.”

“Could be worse” Nicole shrugged as she placed the document carefully into the frame then worked to replace the backing. “Out of the laundry list of terrible or offensive nicknames she could call you, babygirl is actually kind of adorable.”

“I guess” Waverly nodded. She thought it over while she watched Nicole’s dexterous fingers work quickly but gently to remove the backing of the second frame and slide in the official letter of emancipation. She finally nodded in approval of the nickname after mulling it over for a minute or two and as she reached up to hang her birth certificate next to Nicole’s emancipation, she grinned. She liked her new nickname as much as she liked her birth name.

Once the frames were in place, Nicole stepped back and slid her arm around Waverly’s shoulders. They stood there for a few seconds admiring what all their hard work and pain had led to. She gave a single nod of approval then whispered in Waverly’s ear “Just don’t tell her it’s adorable. She’ll immediately call you something disgusting for the rest of your life.”

“Oh god no” Waverly shook her head before leaning it against Nicole’s shoulder. “I will let her think I hate it for as long as possible.”

“See?” Nicole glanced down at the top of her girlfriend’s head with a smile. She touched a kiss there before looking back at the wall. She squeezed the girl more tightly against her side and nodded “I knew you two would figure it out. It’s in your DNA.”

~.~.~.~.~.~.


End file.
